Systems and Methods Using Multiple Solvents for the Removal of Lipids from Fluids

ABSTRACT

This invention is directed to systems and methods for removing lipids from a fluid or from lipid-containing organisms from a fluid, such as plasma. These systems combine a fluid with at least one extraction solvent, which causes the lipids to separate from the fluid or from the lipid-containing organisms. The separated lipids are removed from the fluid. The at least one extraction solvent is removed from the fluid or at least reduced to a concentration enabling the fluid to be administered to a patient without undesirable consequences. Once the fluid has been processed, the fluid may be administered to a patient who donated the fluid or to a different patient for therapy.

This is a continuation application of U.S. Ser. No. 11/737,939, nowpending, which is a continuation application of U.S. Ser. No.10/856,211, filed May 28, 2004, now abandoned, which is a divisionalapplication of U.S. Ser. No. 10/178,900, filed Jun. 21, 2002, issued asU.S. Pat. No. 7,033,500, which claims priority to each of U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 60/301,112, filed Jun. 25, 2001; U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/301,108, filed Jun. 25, 2001; U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 60/300,927, filed Jun. 25, 2001; andU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/301,109, filed Jun. 25, 2001.All of the above-identified patent applications are hereby incorporatedby reference in their entirety.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of the filing dates of U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/301,112, filed Jun. 25, 2001; U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 60/301,108, filed Jun. 25, 2001; U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 60/300,927, filed Jun. 25, 2001; U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 60/301,109, filed Jun. 25, 2001; andU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/346,094, filed Jan. 2, 2002,all of which are incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to systems, apparatuses and methods forthe removal of lipids from fluids, especially blood plasma, or fromlipid-containing organisms, or both, using extraction solvents. Afterbeing processed, the fluid may be administered to an animal or human fortherapeutic use such as treatment of arteriosclerosis andatherosclerotic vascular diseases, removal of fat within an animal orhuman, and reduction of infectivity of lipid-containing organisms.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Hyperlipidemia and Arteriosclerosis

Cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and peripheral vascular diseases areresponsible for a significant number of deaths annually in manyindustrialized countries. One of the most common pathological processesunderlying these diseases is arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerosis ischaracterized by lesions, which begin as localized fatty thickenings inthe inner aspects of blood vessels supplying blood to the heart, brain,and other organs and tissues throughout the body. Over time, theseatherosclerotic lesions may ulcerate, exposing fatty plaque depositsthat may break away and embolize within the circulation. Atheroscleroticlesions obstruct the lumens of the affected blood vessels and oftenreduce the blood flow within the blood vessels, which may result inischemia of the tissue supplied by the blood vessel. Embolization ofatherosclerotic plaques may produce acute obstruction and ischemia indistal blood vessels. Such ischemia, whether prolonged or acute, mayresult in a heart attack or stroke from which the patient may or may notrecover. Similar ischemia in an artery supplying an extremity may resultin gangrene requiring amputation of the extremity.

For some time, the medical community has recognized the relationshipbetween arteriosclerosis and levels of dietary lipid, serum cholesterol,and serum triglycerides within a patient's blood stream. Manyepidemiological studies have been conducted revealing that the amount ofserum cholesterol within a patient's blood stream is a significantpredictor of coronary disease. Similarly, the medical community hasrecognized the relationship between hyperlipidemia and insulinresistance, which can lead to diabetes mellitus. Further, hyperlipidemiaand arteriosclerosis have been identified as being related to othermajor health problems, such as obesity and hypertension.

Hyperlipidemia may be treated by changing a patient's diet. However, useof a patient's diet as a primary mode of therapy requires a major efforton the part of patients, physicians, nutritionists, dietitians, andother health care professionals and thus undesirably taxes the resourcesof health professionals. Another negative aspect of this therapy is thatits success does not rest exclusively on diet. Rather, success ofdietary therapy depends upon a combination of social, psychological,economic, and behavioral factors. Thus, therapy based only on correctingflaws within a patient's diet is not always successful.

In instances when dietary modification has been unsuccessful, drugtherapy has been used as an alternative. Such therapy has included useof commercially available hypolipidemic drugs administered alone or incombination with other therapies as a supplement to dietary control.Hypolipidemic drugs have had varying degrees of success in reducingblood lipid; however, none of the hypolipidemic drugs successfullytreats all types of hyperlipidemia. While some hypolipidemic drugs havebeen fairly successful, the medical community has not found anyconclusive evidence that hypolipidemic drugs cause regression ofatherosclerosis. In addition, all hypolipidemic drugs have undesirableside effects. As a result of the lack of success of dietary control,drug therapy and other therapies, atherosclerosis remains a major causeof death in many parts of the world.

To combat this disturbing fact, a relatively new therapy has been usedto reduce the amount of lipid in patients for whom drug and diettherapies were not sufficiently effective. This therapy, referred to asplasmapheresis therapy or plasma exchange therapy, involves replacing apatients plasma with donor plasma or more usually a plasma proteinfraction. While having been fairly successful, this treatment hasresulted in complications due to introduction of foreign proteins andtransmission of infectious diseases. Further, plasma exchangeundesirably removes many plasma proteins, such as very low-densitylipoprotein (VLDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-densitylipoprotein (HDL).

HDL is secreted from both the liver and the intestine as nascent,disk-shaped particles that contain cholesterol and phospholipids. HDL isbelieved to play a role in reverse cholesterol transport, which is theprocess by which excess cholesterol is removed from tissues andtransported to the liver for reuse or disposal in the bile. Therefore,removal of HDL from plasma is not desirable.

Other apheresis techniques exist that can remove LDL from plasma. Thesetechniques include absorption of LDL in heparin-agarose beads (affinitychromatography), the use of immobilized LDL-antibodies, cascadefiltration absorption to immobilize dextran sulphate, and LDLprecipitation at low pH in the presence of heparin. Each method removesLDL but not HDL.

LDL apheresis, however, has disadvantages. For instance, significantamounts of plasma proteins in addition to LDL are removed duringapheresis. In addition, LDL apheresis must be performed frequently, suchas weekly, to obtain a sustained reduction in LDL-cholesterol.Furthermore, LDL removal may be counterproductive because low LDL levelsin a patient's blood may result in increased cellular cholesterolsynthesis. Thus, removal of LDL from a patient's blood may have negativeside effects.

Yet another method of achieving a reduction in plasma cholesterol inhomozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, heterozygous familialhypercholesterolemia and patients with acquired hyperlipidemia is anextracorporeal lipid elimination process, referred to as lipidapheresis. In lipid apheresis, blood is withdrawn from a patient, theplasma is separated from the blood, and the plasma is mixed with asolvent mixture. The solvent mixture extracts lipids from the plasma.Thereafter, the delipidated plasma is recombined with the patient'sblood cells and returned to the patient.

More specifically, lipid apheresis results in the removal of fats fromplasma or serum. However, unlike LDL apheresis, the proteins(apolipoproteins) that transport lipids remain soluble in the treatedplasma or serum. Thus, the apolipoproteins of VLDL, LDL and HDL arepresent in the treated plasma or serum. These apolipoproteins, inparticular apolipoproteins Al from the delipidated HDL in the plasma orserum, are responsible for the mobilization of unwanted lipids ortoxins, such as excessive amounts of deposited lipids includingcholesterol in arteries, plaques, and excessive amounts oftriglycerides, adipose tissue, and fat soluble toxins present in adiposetissue. These excessive amounts of lipids or toxins are transferred tothe plasma or serum, and then bound to the newly assembledapolipoproteins. Application of another lipid apheresis proceduresuccessively removes these unwanted lipids or toxins from the plasma andthus the body. The main advantage of this procedure is that LDL and HDLare not removed from the plasma. Instead, only cholesterol, somephospholipid and a considerable amount of triglycerides are removed.

While lipid apheresis has the potential to overcome the shortcomings ofdietary control, drug therapy and other apheresis techniques, existingapparatuses and methods for lipid apheresis do not provide asufficiently rapid and safe process. Thus, a need exists for systems,apparatuses and methods capable of conducting lipid apheresis morequickly than accomplished with conventional equipment and methods.

Unfortunately, existing lipid apheresis systems suffer from a number ofdisadvantages that limit their ability to be used in clinicalapplications, such as in doctors' offices and other medical facilities.One disadvantage is the explosive nature of the solvents used todelipidate this plasma. If used in a continuous system, these solventsare in close proximity to patients and medical staff. Thus, it would beadvantageous to limit this exposure; however, this hazard is clearlypresent for the duration of the delipidation process, which usually runsfor several hours.

Another disadvantage is the difficulty in removing a sufficient amountof solvents from the delipidated plasma in order for the delipidatedplasma to be safely returned to a patient. In addition, patients aresubjected to an increased chance of prolonged exposure to solvents in acontinuous system. Furthermore, current techniques do not provide forsequential multi-washes because the volume of blood necessary forcontinuous processing using conventional equipment requires removal ofan amount of blood that would harm the patient. In other words,conventional equipment does not allow for automated continuous removal,processing and return of plasma to a patient in a manner that does notnegatively impact total blood volume of the patient. While the long-termtoxicity of various extraction solvents is not known, especially whenpresent in the bloodstream, clinicians know that some solvents may crossthe blood-brain barrier. Furthermore, external contact with solvents isknown to cause clinical symptoms, such as irritation of mucousmembranes, contact dermatitis, headaches, dizziness and drowsiness.Therefore, conventional equipment for lipid apheresis is not adequate toconduct continuous processing of a patient's blood.

Infectious Disease

While the medical community has struggled to develop cures forhyperlipidemia and arteriosclerosis, it has likewise struggled in itsbattle against infectious diseases. Infectious diseases are a majorcause of suffering and death throughout the world. Infectious disease ofvaried etiology affects billions of animals and humans each year andinflicts an enormous economic burden on society. Many infectiousorganisms contain lipid as a major component of the membrane thatsurrounds them. Three major classes of organisms that produce infectiousdisease and contain lipid in their cell wall or envelope includebacteria, viruses, and protozoa. Numerous bacteria and viruses thataffect animals and humans cause extreme suffering, morbidity andmortality. Many bacteria and viruses travel throughout the body influids, such as blood, and some reside in plasma. These and otherinfectious agents may be found in other fluids, such as peritonealfluid, lymphatic fluid, pleural fluid, pericardial fluid, cerebrospinalfluid, and in various fluids of the reproductive system. Disease can becaused at any site bathed by these fluids. Other bacteria and virusesreside primarily in different organ systems or in specific tissues,where they proliferate and enter the circulatory system to gain accessto other tissues and organs.

Infectious agents, such as viruses, affect billions of people annually.Recent epidemics include the disease commonly known as acquired immunedeficiency syndrome (AIDS), which is believed to be caused by the humanimmunodeficiency virus (HIV). This virus is rapidly spreading throughoutthe world and is prevalent in various sub-populations, includingindividuals who receive blood transfusions, individuals who use needlescontaminated with the disease, and individuals who contact infectedfluids. This disease is also widespread in certain countries. Currently,no known cure exists.

It has long been recognized that a simple, reliable and economicallyefficient method for reducing the infectivity of the HIV virus is neededto decrease transmission of the disease. Additionally, a method oftreating fluids of infected individuals is needed to decreasetransmission of the virus to others in contact with these fluids.Furthermore, a method of treating blood given to blood banks is neededto decrease transmission of the virus through individuals receivingtransfusions. Moreover, an apparatus and method are needed fordecreasing the viral load of an individual or an animal by treating theplasma of that individual and returning the treated plasma to theindividual such that the viral load in the plasma is decreased.

Other major viral infections that affect animals and humans include, butare not limited to meningitis, cytomegalovirus, and hepatitis in itsvarious forms. While some forms of hepatitis may be treated with drugs,other forms have not been successfully treated in the past.

At the present time, most anti-viral therapies focus on preventing orinhibiting viral replication by manipulating the initial attachment ofthe virus to the T4 lymphocyte or macrophage, the transcription of viralRNA to viral DNA and the assemblage of new virus during reproduction.Such a focus has created major difficulty with existing treatments,especially with regard to HIV. Specifically, the high mutation rate ofthe HIV virus often renders treatments ineffective shortly afterapplication. In addition, many different strains of HIV have alreadybecome or are becoming resistant to anti-viral drug therapy.Furthermore, during anti-viral therapy treatment, resistant strains ofthe virus may evolve. Finally, many common therapies for HIV infectioninvolve several undesirable side effects and require patients to ingestnumerous pills daily. Unfortunately, many individuals are afflicted withmultiple infections caused by more than one infectious agent, such asHIV, hepatitis and tuberculosis. Such individuals require even moreaggressive and expensive drugs to counteract disease progression. Suchdrugs may cause numerous side effects as well as multi-drug resistance.Therefore, an effective method and apparatus is needed that does notrely on drugs for combating infectious organisms found in fluids.

Thus, a need exists to overcome the deficiencies of conventional systemsand methods for removing lipids from fluids such as plasma or serum andfor removing lipids from infectious organisms contained in a fluid.Furthermore, a need exists for a medical apparatus and method to performdelipidation rapidly, either in a continuous or discontinuous manner ofoperation. A need further exists for such an apparatus and process toperform safely and reliably, and to produce delipidated fluid havingresidual plasma solvent levels meeting acceptable standards. Inaddition, a need exists for an apparatus having minimal physicalconnection between a patient and the lipid apheresis process.Furthermore, a need exists for an economical medical apparatus that issterile and made of a disposable construction for a single useapplication. Finally, a need exists for such an apparatus and process tobe automated, thereby requiring minimal operator intervention during thecourse of normal operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention is directed to systems, apparatuses and methods forremoving lipids from fluids containing lipids or from lipid-containingorganisms, or both, and more particularly, this invention is directed tothe removal of lipids from fluids containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms using multiple solvents. Specifically, these systems areadapted to remove lipids from a fluid or from lipid-containingorganisms, or both, by contacting the fluid with at least two solventsin one or more passes through a system.

In general, the systems of this invention receive a fluid that containlipids or that may contain lipid-containing organisms, or both, from afluid source, which may be a patient, a container or other source, andcontact the fluid with a first extraction solvent provided by a firstextraction solvent source. The systems also include at least one devicefor contacting the fluid with a first extraction solvent and forming afirst mixture comprising the fluid and the first extraction solvent,wherein at least a portion of the lipids dissolve in the firstextraction solvent. The systems may include at least one first solventremoval device for contacting the first mixture with a second extractionsolvent, removing a portion of the first mixture, and forming a secondmixture comprising the first extraction solvent, the second extractionsolvent and the fluid and at least a portion of the first extractionsolvent dissolved in the second extraction solvent. The systems includeat least one second solvent removal subsystem for removing at least aportion of the second extraction solvent from the second mixture. Thesystems may also be configured so that the same device or combination ofdevices is used for removing lipids from a fluid using a firstextraction solvent and for removing the first extraction solvent fromthe fluid using a second extraction solvent.

The systems perform a method that reduces the concentration of lipids ina fluid or removes lipids from lipid-containing organisms. The systemsare composed of three phases, referred to as an initial phase, anintermediate phase, and a final phase. The initial phase includescontacting a first extraction solvent with a fluid. The first extractionsolvents permeate the hollow fibers and mix with the fluids within thelumens of the hollow fibers. The first extraction solvent, which may becomposed of many different chemicals as defined below, causes at least aportion of the lipids in the fluid or in the lipid-containing organismsto separate from the fluid containing lipids or from thelipid-containing organisms. The first extraction solvent produces asuspension of lipid particles in the first mixture that is formed fromthe fluid and the first extraction solvent The solvent disrupts thelipid-protein structure and frees the lipid particles, which are notvery soluble in the fluid. A product that results from the initial phaseis a first mixture composed of the fluid having at least some lipidsseparated from the fluid and the first extraction solvent, and a firstextraction solvent with dissolved lipids.

The intermediate phase includes contacting the first mixture with asecond extraction solvent to remove at least a portion of the firstextraction solvent from the first mixture and may separate a portion oflipids remaining in the partially delipidated fluid or in the partiallydelipidated organisms. The intermediate phase produces a second mixturecomposed of a partially delipidated fluid and the first and secondextraction solvents, and a second extraction solvent including dissolvedlipids and a portion of the first extraction solvent. The final phaseincludes removing at least a portion of the first and second extractionsolvents from the second mixture formed during the intermediate phase sothat the concentration of the solvents in the delipidated fluid will notcause undesirable consequences in a patient receiving the delipidatedfluid.

The systems of this invention perform the initial, intermediate andfinal phases to produce a fluid or lipid-containing organism having areduced concentration of lipids. These phases may be performed usingsystems having many different configurations. For instance, at least oneembodiment of this invention uses a different subsystem to perform eachof the initial, intermediate, and final phases of the delipidationmethod. Other embodiments of the invention use a single subsystem toperform both the initial and intermediate phases of the delipidationmethod and a different subsystem to perform the final phase of thedelipidation method. In yet another embodiment, a single device is usedto perform all three phases of the delipidation method.

In certain embodiments, a first phase subsystem performs the first phaseof the delipidation method. The first phase subsystem may be composed ofnumerous components, including, but not limited to, at least one hollowfiber contactor (HFC), at least one drip through column (DTC), at leastone in-line static mixer, at least one depth filter, a vortexer, acentrifuge, end-over-end rotation of a sealed container, or othersuitable devices, or any combination of these devices. The intermediatephase may be performed using either the first phase system with a secondextraction solvent or an entirely different subsystem. For instance, theintermediate phase subsystem may be composed of at least one HFC, atleast one DTC, at least one in-line static-mixer, a depth filter, avortexer, a centrifuge, end-over-end rotation of a sealed container, orother suitable device, or any combination of these devices.

The final phase of the delipidation method may be conducted using afinal phase subsystem. One embodiment of the final phase system includesat least one BFC for removing the first and second extraction solventsfrom the fluid. This may be accomplished by passing the second mixtureof partially delipdated fluid and first and second extraction solventsthrough lumens of hollow fibers of the at least one HFC while a gas,such as common air, nitrogen or other gases; a mineral oil; or othermaterials, is passed through the HFC on the shell side of the hollowfibers, or vice versa. The final phase subsystem may consist of two ormore HFCs coupled together in a series or parallel configuration. Thefirst and second extraction solvents in the fluid may be reduced to adesired level by passing the second mixture through the final phasesubsystem one or more times depending on the configuration of thesystem.

An advantage of this invention is that fluids containing lipids orlipid-containing organisms can be processed in a continuous manner andreturned to a patient without requiring withdrawal of an unacceptablelevel of blood from the patient. Furthermore, this invention may be usedas a discontinuous or batch system for processing a fluid, such asplasma from a blood bank.

Another advantage of this invention is that the concentration of lipidsor lipid-containing organisms, or both, may be reduced in a fluid in atime efficient manner.

Yet another advantage of this invention is that portions of thesesystems that contact a fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms, or both, during operation are capable of being produced asdisposable members, which reduces the amount of time needed betweenpatients to prepare a system for use by another patient.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent after review of the following drawings and detaileddescription of the disclosed embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a delipidation method of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a first embodiment of this inventionshowing an initial phase subsystem and an intermediate phase subsystem.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a HFC usable to practice this inventionwith a partial cut away section.

FIG. 4 is cross-sectional view of a portion of a hollow fiber membraneof the HFC shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 depicts an example of a DTC usable to practice this invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematicized perspective view of a continuous vortexerusable to practice this invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematicized perspective view of a batch vortexer usable topractice this invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematicized perspective view of centrifuge usable topractice this invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a final phasesubsystem for reducing the concentration of first and second extractionsolvents in a delipidated fluid.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of the final phasesubsystem for reducing the concentration of first and second extractionsolvents in the delipidated fluid.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of a second embodiment of this inventionshowing the initial phase subsystem and the intermediate phasesubsystem.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of a third embodiment of this inventionshowing a single apparatus for performing the initial phase and theintermediate phase of the delipidation method.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a fourth embodiment of this inventionshowing a single apparatus for performing the initial phase and theintermediate phase of the delipidation method.

FIG. 14 is a schematicized perspective view of the device of FIG. 2contained in a module.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the device of FIG. 14 coupled to adelipidation system.

FIG. 16 is a schematicized perspective view of the device of FIG. 11contained in a module.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the device of FIG. 16 coupled to adelipidation system.

FIG. 18 is a schematicized perspective view of the device of FIG. 12contained in a module.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of the device of FIG. 18 coupled to adelipidation system.

FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram of a fifth embodiment of this inventionshowing an apparatus for removing lipids from a fluid or from alipid-containing organism.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to systems, apparatuses and methods useful fordelipidation of fluids, including biological fluids, in animals,including humans. These systems and apparatuses can be used to treatarteriosclerosis and atherosclerotic vascular diseases by removinglipids from plasma. These systems and apparatuses can also be used toremove lipids from lipid-containing organisms, especially infectiousorganisms circulating within fluids of animals and humans.

I. Definitions and Solvents

A. Definitions

The term “fluid” is defined as fluids from animals or humans thatcontain lipids, fluids from culturing tissues and cells that containlipids, fluids mixed with lipid-containing cells, and fluids mixed withlipid-containing organisms. For purposes of this invention, delipidationof fluids includes delipidation of cells and organisms in a fluid.Fluids include, but are not limited to: biological fluids; such as,blood, plasma, serum, lymphatic fluid, cerebrospinal fluid, peritonealfluid, pleural fluid, pericardial fluid; various fluids of thereproductive system including, but not limited to, semen, ejaculatoryfluids, follicular fluid and amniotic fluid; cell culture reagents suchas, normal sera, fetal calf serum or serum derived from any animal orhuman; and immunological reagents such as, various preparations ofantibodies and cytokines from culturing tissues and cells, fluids mixedwith lipid-containing cells, and fluids containing lipid-containingorganisms, such as a saline solution containing lipid-containingorganisms.

The term “hollow fiber contactor” (HFC) is defined as being anyconventional HFC or other HFC. Typically, HFCs have an outer body,referred to as a shell and forming a chamber, for containing a pluralityof hollow fibers positioned generally parallel to a longitudinal axis ofthe shell. The hollow fibers are generally cylindrical tubes havingsmall diameters formed by a permeable membrane having pores that allowcertain materials pass through the membrane. The HFC allows a firstmaterial to pass through the lumens of the hollow fibers and a secondmaterial to pass through the HFC on the shell side of the hollow fibers.The first material may pass from the lumens of the hollow fibers,through the pores of the hollow fibers and into the second material onthe shell side of the hollow fibers, or vice versa. The ability for thematerials to pass through the pores of the hollow fibers is predicatedon numerous factors; such as pore size, pressure, flow rate, solubility,and others.

The term “drip through column” (DTC) is defined as being anyconventional DTC or other DTC. A DTC functions by forming a smalldispersion of one material and allowing the dispersed material to fallby gravity through another material contained in the DTC. Typically,DTCs are formed from a column that is sealed at each end. A smallorifice is positioned at one end of the DTC for forming a smalldispersion of a first material. The remainder of the DTC is filled witha second material through which the first material passes.

The term “lipid” is defined as any one or more of a group of fats orfat-like substances occurring in humans or animals. The fats or fat-likesubstances are characterized by their insolubility in water andsolubility in organic solvents. The term “lipid” is known to those ofordinary skill in the art and includes, but is not limited to, complexlipid, simple lipid, triglycerides, fatty acids, glycerophospholipids(phospholipids), true fats such as esters of fatty acids, glycerol,cerebrosides, waxes, and sterols such as cholesterol and ergosterol.

The term “lipid” is also defined as including lipid-containing organismsand lipid-containing infectious agents. Such lipids may be found, forexample, in a bacterial cell wall or viral envelope. Lipid-containingorganisms include, but are not limited to, eukaroyotic and prokaryoticorganisms, bacteria, viruses, protozoa, mold, fungi, and otherlipid-containing parasites.

The term “infectious organism” means any lipid-containing infectiousorganism capable of causing infection. Some infectious organisms includebacteria, viruses, protozoa, parasites, fungi and mold. Some bacteriawhich may be treated with the method of this invention include, but arenot limited to the following: Staphylococcus; Streptococcus, includingS. pyogenes; Enterococci; Bacillus, including Bacillus anthracis, andLactobacillus; Listeria; Corynebacterium diphtheriae; Gardnerellaincluding G. vaginalis; Nocardia; Streptomyces; Thermoactinomycesvulgaris; Treponema; Camplyobacter; Pseudomonas including Paeruginosa;Legionella; Neisseria including N. gonorrhoeae and N. meningitides;Flavobacterium including F. meningosepticum and F. odoratum; Brucella;Bordetella including B. pertussis and B. bronchiseptica; Escherichiaincluding E. coli; Klebsiella; Enterobacter; Serratia including S.marcescens and S. liquefaciens; Edwardsiella; Proteus including P.mirabilis and P. vulgaris; Streptobacillus; Rickettsiaceae including R.rickettsii; Chiamydia including C. psittaci and C. trachomatis;Mycobacterium including M. tuberculosis, M. intracellulare, M.fortuitum, M. laprae, M. avium, M. bovis, M. africanum, M. kansasii, M.intracellulare, and M. lepraemurium; and Nocardia, and any otherbacteria containing lipid in their membranes.

Viral infectious organisms which may be inactivated by the above systeminclude, but are not limited to the lipid-containing viruses of thefollowing genuses: Alphavirus (alphaviruses), Rubivurus (rubella virus),Flavivirus (Flaviviruses), Pestivirus (mucosal disease viruses),(unnamed, hepatitis C virus), Coronavirus, (Coronaviruses), Torovirus,(toroviruses), Arteivirus, (arteriviruses), Paramyxovirus,(Paramyxoviruses), Rubulavirus (rubulavriuses), Morbillivirus(morbillivuruses), Pneumovirinae (the pneumoviruses), Pneumovirus(pneumoviruses), Vesiculovirus (vesiculoviruses), Lyssavirus(lyssaviruses), Ephemerovirus (ephemeroviruses), Cytorhabdovirus (plantrhabdovirus group A), Nucleorhabdovirus (plant rhabdovirus group B),Filovirus (filoviruses), Influenzavirus A, B (influenza A and Bviruses), Influenza virus C (influenza C virus), (unnamed, Thogoto-likeviruses), Bunyavirus (bunyaviruses), Phlebovirus (phleboviruses),Nairovirus (nairoviruses), Hantavirus (hantaviruses), Tospovirus(tospoviruses), Arenavirus (arenaviruses), unnamed mammalian type Bretroviruses, unnamed, mammalian and reptilian type C retroviruses,unnamed type D retroviruses, Lentivirus (lentiviruses), Spumavirus(spumaviruses), Orthohepadnavirus (hepadnaviruses of mammals),Avihepadnavirus (hepadnaviruses of birds), Simplexvirus(simplexviruses), Varicellovirus (varicelloviruses), Betaherpesvirinae(the cytomegaloviruses), Cytomegalovirus (cytomegaloviruses),Muromegalovirus (murine cytomegaloviruses), Roseolovirus (human herpesvirus 6), Gammaherpesvirinae (the lymphocyte-associated herpes viruses),Lymphocryptovirus (Epstein-Bar-like viruses), Rhadinovirus(saimiri-ateles-like herpes viruses), Orthopoxvirus (orthopoxviruses),Parapoxvirus (parapoxviruses), Avipoxvirus (fowlpox viruses),Capripoxvirus (sheeppoxlike viruses), Leporipoxvirus (myxomaviruses),Suipoxvirus (swine-pox viruses), Molluscipoxvirus (molluscum contagiosumviruses), Yatapoxvirus (yabapox and tanapox viruses), Unnamed, Africanswine fever-like viruses, Iridovirus (small iridescent insect viruses),Ranavirus (front iridoviruses), Lymphocystivirus (lymphocystis virusesof fish), Togaviridae, Flavividdae, Coronavipidae, Enabdoviridae,Filoviridae, Paramyxoviridae, Orthomyxoviridae, Bunyaviridae,Arenaviridae, Retroviridae, Hepadnaviridae, Herpesviridae, Poxviridae,and any other lipid-containing virus.

These viruses include the following human and animal pathogens: RossRiver virus, fever virus, dengue viruses, Murray Valley encephalitisvirus, tick-borne encephalitis viruses (including European and fareastern tick-borne encephalitis viruses, human coronaviruses 229-E andOC43 and others (causing the common cold, upper respiratory tractinfection, probably pneumonia and possibly gastroenteritis), humanparainfluenza viruses 1 and 3, mumps virus, human parainfluenza viruses2, 4a and 4b, measles virus, human respiratory syncytial virus, rabiesvirus, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, influenza A viruses and influenza Bviruses, Arenaviruss: lymphocytic choriomeningitis (LCM) virus; Lassavirus, human immunodeficiency viruses 1 and 2, or any otherimmunodeficiency virus, hepatitis A virus, hepatitis B virus, hepatitisC virus, Subfamily: human herpes viruses 1 and 2, herpes virus B,Epstein-Barr virus), (smallpox) virus, cowpox virus, molluscumcontagiosum virus.

All protozoa containing lipid, especially in their plasma membranes, areincluded within the scope of the present invention. Protozoa that may beinactivated by the system and apparatus of the present inventioninclude, but are not limited to, the following lipid-containingprotozoa: Trypanosoma brucei, Trypanosoma gambiense, Trypanosoma cruzi,Leishmania donovani, Leishmania vianni, Leishmania tropica, Giardialamblia, Giardia intestinalis, Trichomonas vaginalis, Entamoebahistolytica, Entamoeba coli, Entamoeba hartmanni, Naegleria species,Acanthamoeba species, Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax,Plasmodium malariae, Plasmodium ovale, Toxoplasma gondii,Cryptosporidium parvum, Cryptosporidium muris, Isospora belli,Cyclospora cayetansis, Balantidium species, Babesia bovis, Babesia,microti Babesia divergens, Encephalitozoon intestinalis, Pleistophoraspecies, Nosema ocularum, Vittaforma corneae, Septata intestinalis,Enterocytozoon, Dientamoeba fragilis, Blastocystis species, Sarcocystisspecies, Pneumocystis carinii, Microsporidium africanum, Microsporidiumceylonensis, Eimeria acervulina, Eimeria maxima, Eimeria tenella andNeospora caninum. It is to be understood that the present invention isnot limited to the protozoa provided in the list above.

A preferred protozoa treated with the method of the present invention isCoccidia, which includes Isospora species, Cryptosporidium species,Cyclospora species, Toxoplasma species, Sarcocystis species, Neosporaspecies, and Eimeria species. These coccidian parasites cause intestinaldisease, lymphadenopathy, encephalitis, myocarditis, and pneumonitis.

The terms “protozoal infection” or “infectious disease” mean diseasescaused by protozoal infectious organisms. The diseases include, but arenot limited to, African sleeping sickness, Chagas' disease,Leishmaniasis, Giardiasis, Trichomoniasis, amebiasis, primary amebicencephalitis, granulomatous amebic encephalitis, malaria, Toxoplasmosis,Cryptosporidiosis, Isosporiasis, Cyclosporiasis, Balantidiasis,Babesiosis, microsporidiosis, Dientamoeba fragilis infection,Blastocystis hominis infection, Sarcosporidiosis, pneumonia, andcoccidiosis. A preferred protozoal infection treated with the method ofthe present invention is Coccidiosis, which is caused by Isosporaspecies, Cryptosporidium species, Cyclospora species, Toxoplasmaspecies, Sarcocystis species, Neospora species, and Eimeria species.These coccidian parasites cause human intestinal disease,lymphadenopathy, encephalitis, myocarditis, and pneumonitis. Thesecoccidian parasites also cause disease in animals, including cattle,dogs, cats, and birds. Avians, and chickens, turkeys and quail inparticular, are affected by Coccidiosis, especially by Eimeria speciessuch as E. acervulina, E. maxima, E. necatrix, E. bruneti, E. mitis, E.praecox and E. tenella.

The term “continuous” refers to the process of delipidating a fluid,such as plasma, while the animal or human remains connected to anapparatus for delipidating the fluid. Additionally, “continuous” refersto the internal process of the lipid removal system, wherein the fluidcontinually flows within the lipid removal system from subsystem tosubsystem.

The term “batch” refers to the process of delipidating a fluid, such asplasma, without returning or passing the delipidated fluid directly tothe animal or human during the delipidation process. Rather, thedelipidated fluid is stored. Additionally, “batch” refers to theinternal process of the lipid removal machine, wherein the fluid doesnot continually flow within the lipid removal system from subsystem tosubsystem.

The term “delipidation” refers to the process of removing lipids from afluid or from a lipid-containing organism.

The term “first extraction solvent” is defined as one or more solventsused in the initial stage subsystem of extracting lipids from a fluid.The first extraction solvent enters the fluid and remains in the fluiduntil removed by other subsystems. Suitable extraction solvents includesolvents that extract or dissolve lipids, including, but not limited to,alcohols, phenols, hydrocarbons, amines, ethers, esters,halohydrocarbons, halocarbons, and combinations thereof. Preferred firstextraction solvents are combinations of alcohols and ethers, whichinclude, but are not limited to n-butanol, di-isopropyl ether (DiPE),which is also referred to as isopropyl ether, diethyl ether (DEE), whichis also referred to as ethyl ether, sevoflourane, perfluorocyclohexanes,trifluoroethane, isoflurane, cyclofluorohexanol and combinationsthereof.

The term “second extraction solvent” is defined as one or more solventsthat facilitate removal of at least a portion of the first extractionsolvent. Suitable second extraction solvents include any solvent thatfacilitates removal of the first extraction solvent mixed with orexposed to the fluid containing lipids or lipid-containing organisms, orboth. Second extraction solvents include any solvent that facilitatesremoval of the first extraction solvent including, but not limited to,ethers, alcohols, phenols, hydrocarbons, amines, esters,halohydrocarbons, halocarbons, and combinations thereof. Preferredsecond extraction solvents include an ether, such as diethyl ether,which facilitates removal of lower order alcohols, such as n-butanol,from the fluid.

The term “patient” refers to animals and humans, which may be either afluid source or a recipient of delipidated fluid or delipidatedorganisms.

B. Solvents

Numerous organic solvents may be used in the method of this inventionfor removal of lipid from fluids and from lipid-containing organisms,especially infectious organisms, provided that the solvents orcombinations thereof are effective in solubilizing lipids. Suitablesolvents comprise mixtures of hydrocarbons, ethers, alcohols, phenols,esters, halohydrocarbons, halocarbons and amines. Other solvents whichmay be used with this invention include amines and mixtures of amines.Preferred solvents are combinations of alcohols and ethers. Anotherpreferred solvent comprises an ether or combinations of ethers. It ispreferred that the solvent or combination of solvents has a relativelylow boiling point to facilitate removal via a combination of vacuum andpossibly heat applications.

Examples of suitable amines for use in removal of lipid fromlipid-containing organisms are those which are substantially waterimmiscible. Typical amines are aliphatic amines having a carbon chain ofat least 6 carbon atoms. A non-limiting example of such an amine isC₆H₁₃NH₂. Another suitable amine is perfluorotributyl amine.

The alcohols which are preferred for use in this invention, when usedalone, include those alcohols that are not appreciably miscible withplasma or other fluids. Such alcohols include, but are not limited to,straight chain and branched chain alcohols, including pentanols,hexanols, heptanols, octanols, and alcohols containing higher numbers ofcarbons. Halogenated alcohols may be employed, including, but notlimited to, heptafluoro-butanol.

When alcohols are used in combination with another solvent, for example,an ether, a hydrocarbon, an amine, or a combination thereof, C₁-C₈containing alcohols may be used. Preferred alcohols for use incombination with another solvent include C₄-C₈ containing alcohols.Accordingly, preferred alcohols are butanols, pentanols, hexanols, suchas 1-hexanol, heptanols, octanols, and ethanols, and iso forms thereof.Particularly preferred are the butanols (1-butanol and 2-butanol). Asstated above, the most preferred alcohol is the C₄ alcohol, butanol. Thespecific choice of alcohol will depend on the second solvent employed.In a preferred embodiment, lower alcohols are combined with lowerethers.

Ethers, used alone, or in combination with other solvents, preferablyalcohols, are another preferred solvent for use in the method of thepresent invention. Particularly preferred are the C₄-C₈containing-ethers, including but not limited to, diethyl ether, andpropyl ethers, including but not limited to di-isopropyl ether.Asymmetrical ethers and halogenated ethers may also be employed. Alsouseful in the present invention are combinations of ethers, such asdi-isopropyl ether and diethyl ether. When ethers and alcohols are usedin combination as a first solvent for contacting the fluid containinglipids or lipid-containing organisms, or both, any combination ofalcohol and ether may be used provided the combination is effective topartially or completely remove lipids from the fluid or thelipid-containing organism. In one embodiment, lipids are removed fromthe viral envelope or bacterial cell wall of the infectious organism,which reduces the infectivity of the infectious organism.

When alcohols and ether are combined as a first extraction solvent forremoving lipids from a fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms, or both, preferred ratios of alcohol to ether in this solventare about 0.01%-60% alcohol to about 40%-99.99% of ether, with apreferred ratio of about 10%-50% of alcohol with about 50%-90% of ether,with a most preferred ratio of about 20%-45% alcohol and about 55%-80%ether. An especially preferred combination of alcohol and ether is thecombination of butanol and di-isopropyl ether. Another especiallypreferred combination of alcohol and ether is the combination of butanolwith diethyl ether.

When butanol and di-isopropyl ether are combined as a first extractionsolvent for removing lipids from a fluid containing lipids orlipid-containing organisms, or both, contained in a fluid, preferredratios of butanol to di-isopropyl ether in this solvent are about0.01%-60% butanol to about 40%-99.99% of di-isopropyl ether, with apreferred ratio of about 10%-50% of butanol with about 50%-90% ofdi-isopropyl ether, with a Tnost preferred ratio of about 20%-45%butanol and about 55%-80% di-isopropyl ether. The most preferred ratioof butanol and di-isopropyl ether is about 40% butanol and about 60%di-isopropyl ether.

When butanol is used in combination with diethyl ether in a firstextraction solvent, preferred ratios of butanol to diethyl ether in thiscombination are about 0.01%-60% butanol to about 40%-99.99% diethylether, with a preferred ratio of about 10%-50% butanol with about50%-90% diethyl ether, with a most preferred ratio of about 20%-45%butanol and about 55%-80% diethyl ether. The most preferred ratio ofbutanol and diethyl ether in a first solvent is about 40% butanol andabout 60% diethyl ether.

Hydrocarbons in their liquid form dissolve compounds of low polaritysuch as the lipids in fluids and lipids found in membranes of organisms.Hydrocarbons which are liquid at about 37° C. are effective indisrupting a lipid membrane of an infectious organism. Accordingly,hydrocarbons comprise any substantially water immiscible hydrocarbonwhich is liquid at about 37° C. Suitable hydrocarbons include, but arenot limited to, the following: C₅ to C₂₀ aliphatic hydrocarbons such aspetroleum ether, hexane, heptane, and octane; haloaliphatic hydrocarbonssuch as chloroform, trifluoroethane,1,1,2-trichloro-1,2,2-trifluoroethane, 1,1,1-trichloroethane,trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene dichloromethane and carbontetrachloride; thioaliphatic hydrocarbons; perfluorocarbons, such asperfluorocyclohexane, perfluorohexane, perfluoromethylcyclohexane, andperfluorodimethylcyclohexane; fluroethers such as sevoflurane; each ofwhich may be linear, branched or cyclic, saturated or unsaturated;aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene; alkylarenes such as toluene,haloarenes, haloalkylarenes and thioarenes. Other suitable solvents mayalso include: saturated or unsaturated heterocyclic compounds such aswater insoluble derivatives of pyridine and aliphatic, thio or haloderivatives thereof; and perfluorooctyl bromide. Another suitablesolvent is perfluorodecalin.

II. Introduction

For purposes of explanation, the removal of lipids from plasma, termeddelipidation, is discussed here in detail. However, this is not meant tolimit the application of the invention solely to delipidation of plasma.Rather, the same principles and process apply to other fluids and toremoval of lipids from lipid-containing organisms. The delipidationsystem 10 of this invention, as shown in FIG. 1, is capable of removingat least a portion of a total concentration of lipids from a fluidcontaining lipids or from lipid-containing organisms. In one embodiment,delipidation system 10 receives fluid from a patient, or other source,removes lipid contained in the fluid, and returns the delipidated fluidto the patient, or other source. The delipidation system 10 of thisinvention may be used as a continuous system, by returning fluid to apatient immediately after lipids have been removed or as a batch system,which removes lipids from a fluid but does not return the fluidsimmediately to the patient. Instead, the processed fluid can be storedand administered at a later time.

In general, the delipidation system 10 is comprised of variouscombinations of subsystems that perform the initial, intermediate, andfinal phases of a delipidation method. The initial phase includesremoving lipids from a fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms, or both, using a first extraction solvent. In one embodiment,the first extraction solvent is composed of a mixture of two solvents.The intermediate phase includes washing the fluid received from theinitial phase to remove at least a portion of the first extractionsolvent. The wash may be conducted using at least one second extractionsolvent. The intermediate phase may also remove a portion of lipids thatremain attached to the fluid. The final phase is the removal of thefirst and second extraction solvents from the fluid to an acceptablelevel, such as below about 10 parts per million (ppm) or below about 50milligrams of solvent per 3.5 liters of fluid, for administering thefluid to a patient without causing undesirable consequences. Althoughthe following paragraphs primarily describe removal of lipids fromfluids, it is understood that the same discussion applies to removal oflipids from lipid-containing organisms.

Each of these phases may be performed using the same device or devicesor any combination of devices. For instance, each phase may be conductedusing at least one of the following devices including, but not limitedto, an HFC, a DTC, an in-line static mixer, a depth filter, a vortexer,a centrifuge, or end-over-end rotation of a sealed container, or anycombination of these devices. Each of these phases may be completedusing an initial phase subsystem 12, an intermediate phase subsystem 14,and a final phase subsystem 16, as shown schematically in FIGS. 2, 9 and10. Each phase of the delipidation process may be accomplished usingnumerous combinations of components. The initial phase subsystem 12removes lipids from a fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms, or both, such as plasma, by placing a first extractionsolvent in contact with the fluid.

In the first phase subsystem 12, at least a portion of the totalconcentration of lipids in the fluids is removed and, in at least oneembodiment, a substantial portion of the lipids contained in a fluid isremoved. In addition, a portion of the first extraction solvent mixeswith the fluid forming a first mixture that is sent to the intermediatephase subsystem. This may be accomplished using at least one of thefollowing devices including, but not limited to, an HFC, a DTC, anin-line static mixer, end-over-end rotation of a sealed container, atleast one depth filter, a vortexer, or a centrifuge, or any combinationof these devices.

The intermediate phase subsystem 14 receives the first mixture of thefluid and first extraction solvent from initial phase subsystem 12 andcompletes the delipidation process by removing at least a portion of thefirst extraction solvent and lipids from the fluid using a secondextraction solvent. During this process, a portion of the secondextraction solvent may mix with the first mixture of fluid and firstextraction solvent to form a second mixture. As with the first phasesubsystem 12, this may accomplished in many ways. For instance, theintermediate phase subsystem 12 may be composed of at least one of thefollowing devices including, but not limited to, an HFC, a DTC, anin-line static mixer, end-over-end rotation of a sealed container, atleast one depth filter, a vortexer, or a centrifuge, or any combinationof these devices. This second mixture is then sent to the final phasesubsystem 16.

The final phase subsystem 16 receives the second mixture of fluid andthe first and second extraction solvents from intermediate phasesubsystem 14 and removes at least a portion of the residual firstextraction solvent and a majority of the second extraction solvent fromthe fluid using an inert gas, such as, but not limited to, air, nitrogenor other inert gas, or a mineral oil, or other material. The delipidatedplasma is then in a condition to be returned to a patient or stored foradministration to another patient. The final phase subsystem 16 likewisemay comprise numerous configurations. For instance, in some embodiments,the final phase subsystem 16 may be composed of at least one HFC. Inother embodiments, the final phase subsystem 16 may be composed of atleast two HFCs in parallel or series configuration. In certainembodiments, the final phase subsystem 16 can remove sufficient amountsof the first and second extraction solvents to safely administer thefluid to a patient after the second mixture has passed through thesystem only one time. In other embodiments, the second mixture must besent through the final phase subsystem multiple times before theconcentration of first and second extraction solvents is reduced to anacceptable level for administration of the delipidated fluid to thepatient.

In another embodiment, each phase of the delipidation method may beperformed using a single device, such as an HFC or other such device.For instance, each phase may be conducted using a single HFC forconducting initial, intermediate, and final phases of the delipidationmethod. The HFC may be flushed or reoriented between each phase of thedelipidation as well. In yet another embodiment, the initial phase andthe intermediate phase may be conducted using the same device or devicesthat may be formed from the devices listed immediately above or otherdevices. For instance, the apparatus may include, but is not limited to,an in-line static mixer, a vortexer, or a HFC, or any combinationthereof.

This process is shown schematically in FIG. 1 as being adapted to removelipids from plasma or from lipid-containing organisms, or both. Forinstance, whole blood is drawn from a patient using conventionalprocedures and is subjected to a conventional plasma separation processusing, for instance, cellular separation systems that may be composedof, but are not limited to, apheresis and plasmapheresis systems, suchas SPECTRA and TRIMA manufactured by Cobe BCT, Gambro BCT, Lakewood,Colo.; AUTOPHERESIS-C manufactured by Baxter Healthcare Corporation,Deerfield, Ill.; or AS104 manufactured by Fresenius, Berlin, Germany. Inanother embodiment, blood is combined with an anticoagulant, such assodium citrate, and centrifuged at forces approximately equal to 2,000times gravity. The red blood cells are then aspirated from the plasma.The plasma separation process collects plasma and returns the bloodcells to the patient. The plasma is then subjected to the lipid removalprocess of this invention, which is described in detail below.

III. The Delipidation System

As discussed above, the delipidation system 10 may be composed ofnumerous designs. In one embodiment, delipidation system 10 is composedof at least three subsystems. These subsystems may be composed ofnumerous components to accomplish the objectives described above. Inanother embodiment, a single system may be used to perform two or morephases of the delipidation method. Set forth below are numerousembodiments formed from different components that are capable ofachieving these objectives. These embodiments are described to teach theinvention and are not meant to limit the scope of the invention. Rather,each embodiment is but one of many possible configurations that can beused to accomplish the objectives described above.

Suitable materials for use in any of the apparatus components asdescribed herein include materials that are biocompatible, approved formedical applications that involve contact with internal body fluids, andin compliance with U.S. PV1 or ISO 10993 standards. Further, thematerials should not substantially degrade, from, for instance, exposureto the solvents used in the present invention, during at least a singleuse. The materials should typically be sterilizable either by radiationor ethylene oxide (EtO) sterilization. Such suitable materials should becapable of being formed into objects using conventional processes, suchas, but not limited to, extrusion, injection molding and others.Materials meeting these requirements include, but are not limited to,nylon, polypropylene, polycarbonate, acrylic, polysulphone,polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), fluoroelastomers such as VITON,available from DuPont Dow Elastomers L.L.C., thermoplastic elastomerssuch as SANTOPRENE, available from Monsanto, polyurethane, polyvinylchloride (PVC), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyphenylene ether(PFE), perfluoroalkoxy copolymer (PFA), which is available as TEFLON PFAfrom E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, and combinations thereof.

The valves used in each embodiment may be, but are not limited to,pinch, globe, ball, gate or other conventional valves. Thus, theinvention is not limited to a valve having a particular style. Further,the components of each system described below may be coupled directlytogether or coupled together using conduits that may be composed offlexible or rigid pipe, tubing or other such devices known to those ofordinary skill in the art.

A. First Embodiment

1. Initial Phase Subsystem

FIG. 2 shows a delipidation system 10 composed of an initial phasesubsystem 12 and an intermediate phase subsystem 14, and FIGS. 9 and 10show two embodiments of a final phase subsystem 16. Referring to FIG. 2,initial phase subsystem 12 is formed with a HFC 18. While the embodimentdepicted in FIG. 2, shows a single HFC, the initial phase subsystem 12is not limited to a single HFC but may include additional HFCs. Thenumber of HFCs used in each subsystem may be dictated by the amount oflipid removal desired. The number and size of the HFCs are a function ofthe flow rate of fluids or gases within the lumens of the hollow fibersand on the shell side of the hollow fibers of the HFC, the porosity ofthe hollow fibers, and the amount of surface area of the hollow fibermembrane. Adjusting one of these factors requires the other factors bechanged in order to yield the same output at the same rate.Additionally, patients having higher initial levels of lipids mayrequire more HFCs to be used to obtain the desired degree of lipidremoval.

HFC 18, as shown in more detail in FIG. 3, may be formed from agenerally hollow cylindrical body having a diameter ranging betweenabout 1½ inches to about 4 inches that forms a chamber 22 containing aplurality of hollow fibers 20. Hollow fibers 20 are tubes having smalldiameters, such as between about 0.2 mm and about 1.0 mm, and typicallynumber between about 3,000 and about 5,000. However, hollow fibers 20may number one or more. Chamber 22 is formed by the inside surface ofthe cylindrical body of HFC 18 and the outside surfaces of hollow fibers20. Chamber 22 is commonly referred to as the shell side of the hollowfibers 20. Each hollow fiber 20, as shown in FIG. 4, is a cylindricaltube having a small diameter and is formed from a membrane having pores26 sized to allow gases and liquids to pass through the membrane. Pores26 may have a diameter within the range of between about 5 kilodaltonsand about 500 kilodaltons or between about 3 nanometers and about 300nanometers. Varying the size of pores 26 can allow either more or lessmaterials to pass through pores 26. Hollow fibers 20 are positioned inHFC 18 so that their longitudinal axes are generally parallel to thelongitudinal axis of the HFC 18. Pores 26 need only be large enough toallow the first and second extraction solvents and a gas to diffusethrough pores 26 and for lipids to diffuse through pores 26 and into thesolvents.

While not being bound by the following statements, the followingdiscussion is a possible explanation of the operation of the system atthe pores 26 of the hollow fibers. The hollow fibers 20 may be formed ofeither hydrophobic or hydrophilic materials. If hollow fibers 20 formedfrom a hydrophobic material are used, the solvent fills pores 26 and aninterface forms between the solvent in pores 26 and the fluid thatremains in the lumens. The solvent diffuses across the interface intothe fluid, but there is minimal mixing of the fluid and the solvent.Thus, there exists very little possibility of an emulsion forming. Thelipids that may have been solubilized by the action of the solventsdiffuse into the solvent in the pores 26 at the interface. The lipidscontinue to diffuse through pores 26 until the lipids are swept away bythe solvent flowing through HFC 18 on the shell side 22 of the lumens.If a hydrophilic material is used to form hollow fibers 20, pores 26fill with fluid, and the solvent does not fill pores 26. The lipids thendiffuse through pores 26.

The preferred material is a hydrophobic material because the highesttransport rate is achieved when pores 26 are filled with the materialhaving the highest solubility for the material desired to be passedthrough pores 26. In this case, lipids are more soluble in the solventsdescribed above than in the fluid.

The flow rate of the fluid and first extraction solvent through HFC 18dictates the required amount of permeable surface area on hollow fibers20. For instance, the slower the flow rate, the smaller the surface arearequired, and, conversely, the faster the flow rate, the larger thesurface area required. This is dictated by a mass transport formula. Theformula below illustrates the situation for a soluble gas:

${Q_{1}( {C_{i\; n} - C_{out}} )} = {{K_{1}A_{m}\Delta \; C_{l\; m}} = {K_{l}A_{m}\frac{( {C_{i\; n} - \frac{P_{out}}{H}} ) - ( {C_{out} - \frac{P_{i\; n}}{H}} )}{\ln \frac{C_{i\; n} - \frac{P_{out}}{H}}{C_{out} - \frac{P_{out}}{H}}}}}$

where C_(out) represents the liquid phase concentration (output), C_(in)represent the liquid phase concentration (input), K₁ represents theoverall mass transport coefficient, A_(m) represents the total membranecontact area, Q₁ represents the liquid flow rate, H represents theHenry's Law coefficient and P represents the gas phase partial pressure.If P_(in) and P_(out) are small in magnitude and/or H is large, theterms P and H are negligible and the first equation simplifies to:

$C_{out} = {C_{i\; n}{{\ln( {- \frac{K_{l}A_{m}}{Q_{1}}} )}.}}$

Examples of commercially available HFCs are the CELGARD mini model no.G471, G476, or G478, available from CelGard, Charlotte, N.C., and theSpectrum MINIKROS model no. M21S-600-01N, available from SpectrumLaboratories, Inc., Rancho Dominguez, Calif.

Initial phase subsystem 12 is configured to allow a fluid containinglipids or lipid-containing organisms, or both, to flow through lumens ofhollow fibers 20 of HFC 18 and to allow a first extraction solvent toflow through chamber 22 on the shell side of HFC 18, or vice versa. Inone embodiment, the fluid flows through the lumens of hollow fibers 20in the same general direction as the first extraction solvent. However,in another embodiment, the fluid flows generally opposite to thedirection of flow of the first extraction solvent in the shell side 22,referred to as countercurrent flow. Pores 26 of hollow fibers 20 allowthe first extraction solvent to cross the hollow fiber membrane 20 andto contact the fluid. The first extraction solvent separates the lipidscontained in the fluids. If the fluid is a plasma taken from blood, thefirst extraction solvent separates the lipids from the proteins in theplasma. At least a portion of the separated lipids diffuse through pores26 into the shell side 22 of hollow fibers 20 of HFC 18 and aredeposited into waste receptacle 40. In certain embodiments, a portion ofthe separated lipids do not diffuse through pores 26 but attach to theinside surface of the hollow fiber membrane 20. Thus, initial phasesubsystem 12 separates at least a portion of the lipids contained in thefluid and in certain embodiments separates a significant amount of thelipids. While a portion of the first extraction solvent returns to theshell side 22 of the HFC across hollow fiber membrane 20, a portion ofthe first extraction solvent remains mixed with the fluid in the lumensof hollow fibers 20 forming a first mixture.

A fluid containing lipids or lipid-containing organisms, or both, issupplied to HFC 18 from a fluid source 28, which may be a container, anapheresis system, such as any one of the previously mentioned systems,or other source. The fluid may be administered to the lumens of hollowfibers 20 of HFC 18 using gravity, a vacuum, a pump 30, or other means.Pump 30 may be a peristaltic pump, such as MASTERFLEX L/S model number07523-40 available from Cole Parmer Instrument Company, Vernon Hills,Ill., or other pumps not having vanes that contact the fluid beingpumped.

The shell side 22 of HFC 18 is coupled to a first extraction solventsource 32, which supplies a first extraction solvent to HFC 18. Firstextraction solvent source 32 includes vent 34 for relieving pressure andpreventing unsafe conditions. The first extraction solvent may beadministered to shell side 22 of the HFC 18 using gravity, a vacuum, apump 36, which may be a peristaltic pump or other pump, or other means.HFC 18 includes a waste port 38 on the shell side 22 of HFC 18 forremoving the first extraction solvent. The waste port 38 is in fluidcommunication with a waste receptacle 40, which may be a container orother device for containing the first extraction solvent. A valve 42 maybe coupled between waste port 38 and waste receptacle 40 for controllingthe discharge of the first extraction solvent from the shell side 22 ofHFC 18. The lumens of hollow fibers 20 of HFC 18 are coupled to theintermediate phase subsystem 14.

2. Intermediate Phase Subsystem

The intermediate phase subsystem 14 is composed of at least one DTC andmay be composed of two DTCs 44 and 46 in series, as shown in FIG. 2, orin parallel (not shown). The input port of DTC 44 is in fluidcommunication with the lumens of hollow fibers 20 of HFC 18 and receivesthe first mixture from HFC 18. A DTC, such as DTC 44 and 46, istypically composed of a hollow cylindrical tube or column 48 having acap 50 and 52 at each end, as shown in FIG. 5. The DTC includes aninjection device 54, which is typically a small gauge needle, forinjecting a fine dispersion of the first mixture into the hollowcylinder forming the DTC. The dispersed first mixture falls by gravitythrough the second extraction solvent. As the first mixture fallsthrough the second extraction solvent, the second extraction solventseparates a portion of the first extraction solvent from the fluid. Forinstance, in one embodiment, the first extraction solvent is a mixtureof n-butanol and DiPE, and the second extraction solvent is DiPE. Thesecond extraction solvent removes a portion of the n-butanol and mayremove a substantial amount of the n-butanol. The second extractionsolvent may also separate lipids remaining in the fluid. The lipidsextracted from the first mixture are dissolved in the second extractionsolvent, and the fluid eventually comes to rest on cap 50 of DTC 44. Atthis point, the fluid is composed of a mixture of the first and secondextraction solvents and is referred to as a second mixture.

DTCs 44 and 46 are in fluid communication with a second extractionsolvent container 56, which contains the second extraction solvent, asshown in FIG. 2. The second extraction solvent can flow from the secondextraction solvent container 56 to DTCs 44 and 46 by gravity, by pump58, which may be a peristaltic pump or other pump, or by other means. Athree-way valve 60 controls the flow of the second extraction solventinto DTC 44. Vents 62 and 64 are coupled to DTCs 44 and 46,respectively, and for safe operation and are controlled using valves 66and 68. Valve 70 controls the flow of the second mixture, composed ofthe fluid and first and second extraction solvents, between DTC 44 andDTC 46. Valves 80 and 82 control the flow of the second mixture from DTC46 to the remainder of intermediate phase subsystem 14.

The intermediate phase subsystem 14 may also include a vortexer 72 formixing the first and second extraction solvents with the fluid. Vortexer72 may be composed of many designs, such as a continuous vortexer shownin FIG. 6 or a batch vortexer shown in FIG. 7. Vortexer 72 also includesa vent 84 for safe operation. Referring to FIG. 6, a continuous vortexeris generally composed of a cylindrical tube configured in a spiralformation. This configuration creates vortices within a fluid flowingthrough the cylindrical tube and is capable of processing the fluid in acontinuous fashion as the fluid flows through vortexer 72. The vortexer72 is operated using external vibration. An alternative design is abatch vortexer 72, as shown in FIG. 7. The batch vortexer 72 is composedof housing 74 that contains a plurality of vortex chambers 76. The batchvortexer 72 is capable of receiving a fluid and a solvent through inletport 78. The batch vortexer 72 is externally vibrated to create vorticeswithin each vortex chamber 76. The non-rotating vortexer 72 isadvantageous because of its simple design is less expensive than morecomplicated designs. Thus, it may be used more efficiently than otherdevices in a disposable system. Further, vortexer 72 does not containany bushings, bearings or moving parts that are subject to failure.

Intermediate phase subsystem 14 may also include a centrifuge 86, asshown in FIG. 2 and in more detail in FIG. 8. Centrifuge 86 may beconfigured as a discontinuous flow-through channel in the shape of aring that is spun about its axis. Functionally, the second mixture ofthe fluid and the first and second extraction solvents flow into thecentrifuge ring through one port and exit centrifuge 86 as separatedfluid and first and second extraction solvents. The second mixture maybe sent to centrifuge 86 using gravity, a pump 88, such as a peristalticpump or other type of pump, vacuum, or other means. The spinning actionof centrifuge 86 generates centrifugal forces that separate theconstituents of the second mixture. The mixture of the fluid having asmall amount of first and second extraction solvent is sent to the finalphase subsystem 16 through valve 90. The first and second extractionsolvents that are separated from the fluid in centrifuge 86 are sentthrough valve 92 to either waste receptacle 40 or to a condenser 94.Condenser 94 is included in intermediate phase subsystem 14 if DEE isused as a first or second extraction solvent, and may be used with othersolvents.

The initial phase subsystem 12 and intermediate phase subsystem 14include various sensors 96 located throughout the system for monitoringpressure, temperatures, flow rates, solvent levels and other parameters.The sensors may be any conventional sensor for the parameter beingmeasured.

3. Final Phase Subsystem

The final phase subsystem 16 removes at least a portion of the firstextraction solvent and the second extraction solvent from the fluid thatwas not removed in the intermediate phase subsystem 14. The final phasesubsystem 16 may be composed of at least two embodiments, as shown inFIGS. 9 and 10. Specifically, FIG. 9 shows a once-through system that iscapable of removing at least a portion of the first and secondextraction solvents from a fluid by passing the second mixture throughthe system only one time so that the concentrations of these solventsare less than a particular threshold, which may be about 10 ppm, therebyenabling the fluid to be administered to a patient without undesirableconsequences. FIG. 10 depicts a recirculating subsystem that is alsocapable of reducing the concentration of the first and second extractionsolvents to a level beneath a particular threshold. However, solventconcentrations are reduced to adequate levels by passing the secondmixture through the subsystems one or more times. Each of theseembodiments is discussed in more detail below.

(a) Once-Through Solvent Removal Subsystem

The once-through subsystem 99 depicted in FIG. 9 is composed of two HFCs100 and 102 for removing the first and second extraction solvents fromthe fluid. However, the once-through subsystem may be composed of anynumber of HFCs depending on the effective surface area of the hollowfibers as calculated using the methodology and formulas previouslydescribed. The once-through subsystem includes a pervaporation buffercontainer 104 for receiving the fluid from intermediate phase subsystem16. The pervaporation buffer container 104 is coupled to a container106, which may be, but is not limited to, an air bag for containing theair that escapes from buffer container 104. The fluid may flow into HFC100 by gravity, pump 108, which may be a peristaltic pump or other pumpnot having vanes that contact the fluid being pumped, or other means.

Pervaporation buffer container 104 is coupled to the lumens of hollowfibers 110 of HFC 100 so that a fluid may flow through the lumens ofhollow fibers 110 during operation. The lumens of hollow fibers 110 ofHFC 100 are in fluid communication with the lumens of hollow fibers 112of HFC 102. A chamber 114, also referred to as the shell side of hollowfibers 112 of HFC 102 is capable of receiving a gas, such as air,nitrogen, or other material, such as mineral oil or the like. However,in another embodiment, the gas is sent through the lumens of hollowfibers 112 and the fluid is sent through HFC 102 on the shell side ofhollow fibers 112. Chamber 114 of HFC 102 is coupled to a solventremoval system 1 16 and is in fluid communication with chamber 118 ofHFC 100. Solvent removal system 116 cycles a material in a gaseous statethrough chambers 114 and 118 to remove the first and second extractionsolvents from the fluid contained within lumens of hollow fibers 110 and112. In certain embodiments, the gaseous material is common air,nitrogen, or other inert gas. Solvent removal system 116 may also cyclea mineral oil or other material through chambers 114 and 118.

Solvent removal system 116 includes a carbon bed 120, a first sterilefilter 122, a pump 124, and a second sterile filter 126. These elementsmay be coupled together using a conduit, a coupling or other connectiondevice. Carbon bed 120 is coupled to HFCs 100 and 102 for receivinggases having first and second extraction solvents. Carbon bed 120removes most of the first and second extraction solvents from the gasesbeing passed through the chambers 114 and 118 of HFCs 100 and 102. Firststerile filter 122 and second sterile filter 126 are sterile barriersallowing the system to be partially disassembled without contaminatingthe entire system. Suitable filters may have a lipophilic or hydrophilicmembranes. In another embodiment, the solvent removal system 116 may becomposed of one or more filters, condensers or cold traps, or catalyticcombustors to remove the solvent vapors from the gas before it isrecycled through HFCs 100 and 102.

Final phase subsystem 16 also includes an output buffer container 128for collecting the delipidated fluid after passing through the lumens ofhollow fibers 110 and 112 of HFCs 100 and 102. Output buffer container128 may be any container that is preferably sterile and capable ofholding the delipidated fluid A scale 130 may be included to determinethe amount of fluid present in output buffer container 128 and for otheranalytical purposes.

Final phase subsystem 16 may also include at least one sensor 132 forsensing the presence of a solvent in the fluid leaving final phasesubsystem 16. Various types of solvent sensors may be used as sensor132. Preferably, the sensors are capable of detecting very low levels ofsolvent. One such sensor is capable of measuring differences in infraredabsorption spectra between solvents and plasma. Using approaches knownto those skilled in the art, several light sources and detectors can beintegrated into a non-contact optical sensor that can be calibrated tomeasure the concentrations of one or all of the solvents. Another usefulsensor includes a resistive sensor that uses a resistance processor todetect the presence of very low levels of solid particles, such as modelnumber TGS2620 or TGS822 available from Figaro USA Inc., Glenview, Ill.Yet another type of optical sensor includes one that determines oridentifies molecules comprising a solvent. Optionally, indirectmeasurement of solvent level in the fluid could be performed bymeasuring the amount of solvent in solvent removal system 116. However,direct measurement is more reliable, because an obstruction in filter(s)122 or 126, or other flow impediment may falsely indicate that solventhas been extracted, when the solvent has in fact remained in the fluid.

HFCs 100 and 102 have been tested and successfully reduce totalconcentrations of solvents, such as di-isopropyl ether and di-ethylether, in water and plasmas, such as human and bovine plasma, usingdifferent HFCs, pressures, and flow rates, as shown in Table 1 below.Table 2 below shows the reduction in concentrations of DiPE in water,bovine plasma and human plasma as a function of time. HFCs 100 and 102may have a total surface area of permeable membrane formed by the hollowfibers between about 4,200 square centimeters and about 18,000 squarecentimeters, depending on the type of HFC used. Further, the gas flowrate was varied between about 2 liters per minute to about 10 liters perminute, and the plasma flow rate was varied between about 10 mL perminute to about 60 mL per minute. Operating the once-through finalsubsystem 99 in this manner can reduce the initial concentrations ofsolvents from between about 28,000 ppm and 9,000 ppm to between about1327 ppm and about 0.99 ppm within between about 14 minutes and 30minutes.

TABLE 1 Initial Final Lumen Pressure Pressure Volume DIPE DIPE ModuleFlow rate Air Flow before HFC after HFC Carbon Treated conc conc(Quantity) Orientation Phase (cc/min) (L/min) (psig) (psig) (g) (L) ppmppm Effect of Module Fresenius F6 (1) Horiz H₂O 20 9.3 0.44 −0.74 1000.75 9045 1327 & F8 (1) Spectrum Horiz H₂O 20 ~9 −0.13 −1.01 100 0.759684 3 11200 cm² (2) Celgard (1) Vertical H₂O 20 11 −0.2 −1.21 100 0.510518 0.99 Spectrum Horiz Human 20 9.2 0.91 −0.06 100 0.75 12200 6 11200cm² (2) Plasma Celgard (2) Vertical Human 20 10.1 −0.16 −1.3 150 0.2527822 9 Spectrum Horiz H₂O 18 0.71 −0.83 0.75 9055 18 11200 cm² (2)Spectrum Horiz H₂O 20 0.65 −0.88 0.75 8851 22 11200 cm² (2) SpectrumHoriz H₂O 40 0.7 −0.85 0.75 10016 11 11200 cm² (2) Spectrum Horiz H₂O 600.65 −0.82 100 0.75 10134 93 11200 cm² (2) Celgard (1) Vertical H₂O 209.3 0.44 −0.2 100 0.75 7362 22 Celgard (1) Vertical H₂O 40 9.2 0.44 −0.2100 0.75 9366 193 Effects of Pressure Celgard (2) Vertical Human 20 9.70.11 −1.33 100 0.25 18782 ND Celgard (2) Vertical Human 20 9.2 −1.39−2.93 100 0.25 15246 ND Celgard (2) Vertical Human 20 8.1 −2.79 −4.12100 0.25 13144 ND Full Body Volume Celgard (2) Vertical Human 20 5.3−1.1 −1.8 300 3100 9040 24

TABLE 2 DIPE concentrations [ppm] Time [min] Water Bovine Human (Norm) 06782.094027 9473.974574 11351.10738 2 1716.182938 3012.0656433868.491245 4 118.591244 485.1426701 636.1926821 6 16.36572648102.9572692 125.8618995 8 5.364620368 36.33996072 60.440048 104.230662874 16.08489373 34.50180421 12 2.019251402 23.5489057416.71332069 14 1.537721419 9.218693213 17.32898791 16 3.1692271086.549024255 15.26858655

Various control devices are included in final phase subsystem 16. Forinstance, the once-through subsystem includes a fluid level sensor 134and a temperature sensor 136 coupled to pervaporation buffer container104, a fluid level sensor 138, a fluid presence detector 140, an encoder142 and a current overload detector 144 for controlling pump 108, and apressure sensor 146. Solvent removal system 116 includes a fluidpresence detector 148, a temperature sensor 150, a current overloaddetector 152 for controlling pump 124, and pressure sensors 154 and 156.

(b) Recirculating Solvent Removal Subsystem

The recirculating solvent removal subsystem 218 is configured much likethe once-through subsystem. FIG. 10 depicts the recirculating system asincluding two HFCs 160 and 162 for removing the first and secondextraction solvents from the fluid. While the embodiment depicted inFIG. 10 includes two HFCs positioned in parallel, the subsystem may becomposed of any number of HFCs positioned in parallel, series, or otherconfiguration. In another embodiment, the subsystem may be composed ofonly a single HFC.

HFCs 160 and 162 are preferably sized according to the calculations andmethodology set forth above. HFCs 160 and 162 contain hollow fibers 164and 166, respectively, for receiving the fluid mixed with residual firstand second extraction solvents, referred to as the second mixture, fromintermediate phase subsystem 14. The biological flows from intermediatephase subsystem 14 to a recirculation vessel 168. Recirculation vessel168 receives the fluid mixture from the intermediate phase subsystem 14and from HFCs 160 and 162. The mixture of fluid and remaining first andsecond extraction solvents not removed in intermediate phase subsystem14 is sent to HFCs 160 and 162 using gravity flow, a pump 170, which maybe a peristaltic pump or other pump not having vanes that contact thefluid being pumped, vacuum, or other means. The second mixture flowsthrough the lumens of hollow fibers 164 and 166 of HFCs 160 and 162while a gaseous material, such as common air or nitrogen or other inertgas, or other material is passed through chambers 172 and 174 of HFCs160 and 162, respectively, or vice versa. Chambers 172 and 174 are alsoreferred to as the shell sides of HFCs 160 and 162. The second mixtureis circulated between recirculation vessel 168 and HFCs 160 and 162until a sensor 176 detects that the concentration of the first andsecond extraction solvents in the fluid is less than a predeterminedthreshold, such as less than about 10 ppm or below about 50 milligramsof solvent per 3.5 liters of fluid, for allowing the fluid to beadministered to a patient without undesirable consequences. The fluid isthen sent to output buffer 210 by closing valve 212 and opening valve214. The amount of fluid present in output buffer 210 may be determinedusing scale 216.

The recirculating subsystem 218 also includes a number of controldevices. For instance, the recirculating subsystem 218 includes fluidlevel sensors 196 and 198, a fluid presence detector 200, a currentoverload detector 202 and an encoder 204 for controlling pump 170, apressure sensor 206, and a temperature sensor 208. These sensing devicesare used for controlling the system 218.

A solvent removal system 178 is included within the recirculatingsubsystem 218 for removing the first and second extraction solvents fromthe gas. Solvent removal subsystem 178 routes the gas throughrecirculation vessel 168 to allow more solvent from the fluid containedin vessel 168 to be removed. Solvent removal subsystem 178 includes acarbon bed 180 for removing solvents from the air, a first sterilefilter 182 and a second sterile filter 184 for allowing the solventremoval system 178 to be partially disassembled without contaminatingthe entire system. Suitable filters may have a lipophilic or hydrophilicmembranes. In an alternative embodiment, solvent removal subsystem 178may be composed of one or more filters, condensers or cold traps, orcatalytic combustors to remove the solvent vapors from the gas before itis recycled through HFCs 160 and 162. A pump 186 may be provided forcirculating the gas through the subsystem. Solvent removal subsystem 178may also include a temperature sensor 188, pressure sensors 190 and 192,and a current overload sensor 194 for controlling pump 186.

HFCs 160 and 162 have been tested and successfully reduce totalconcentrations of solvents, such as di-isopropyl ether and di-ethylether, in water and plasmas, such as human and bovine plasma, as shownin Table 3 below. HFCs 160 and 162 may have a total surface area ofpermeable membrane formed by the hollow fibers between about 4,200square centimeters and about 18,000 square centimeters, depending on thetype of HFC used. Further, the gas flow rate was varied between about 2liters per minute to about 14 liters per minute, and the plasma flowrate was varied between about 9 mL per minute to about 900 mL perminute. Operating the recirculating subsystem 218 in this manner canreduce the initial concentrations of solvents, such as DiPE and DEE,from between about 31,000 ppm and 9,400 ppm to between about 312 ppm andabout 2 ppm within between about 14 minutes and 80 minutes.

TABLE 3 Lumen Solvent to be Shell Lumen Module Initial Solvent FinalSolvent Time Material Removed Material Shell Flow Flow (Surface Area)Conc (ppm) Conc (ppm) recirculating Water Diethyl Ether Air 7 L/min 220Fresenius 31000 265 30 min F80A (18000 cm2)  Water Diisopropyl Air 12.3L/min 750 Celgard 6782 2 14 min Ether (8400 cm2) Bovine Diisopropyl Air12.3 L/min 750 Celgard 9473 7 16 min Plasma Ether (8400 cm2) HumanDiisopropyl Air 12.3 L/min 750 Celgard 11351 15 16 min Plasma Ether(8400 cm2) Water Diisopropyl Heavy 10 cc/min 4 cc/min Spectrum 4635 31280 min Ether Mineral Oil (8000 cm2)

4. Example of Use

As described above, the delipidation device depicted schematically inFIG. 2 is capable of removing at least a portion of a totalconcentration of lipids or lipid-containing organisms from a fluid. Inthis particular example, the fluid used was a bovine plasma. The bovineplasma was first introduced into the lumens of hollow fibers 20 of HFC18 at a flow rate of 50 mL/min and contacted with a first extractionsolvent located in chamber 22 of HFC 18, which is the shell side ofhollow fibers 20. The first extraction solvent was composed of a mixtureof about 60 percent di-isopropyl ether (DiPE) and about 40 percentn-butanol and was sent through HFC 18 at a flow rate of 200 mL/min. Asdescribed above, this produced a first mixture of plasma and firstextraction solvent in the lumens of hollow fibers 20. The first mixturewas then washed with a second extraction solvent, which was composed ofdiethyl ether (DEE), in DTCs 44 and 46, which were about 20 inches longand about 0.375 inches in diameter and positioned in series. Sending thefirst mixture through DTCs 44 and 46 reduced the concentration of lipidsin the fluid or lipid-containing organisms, or both, and formed a secondmixture composed of plasma and the first and second extraction solvents.The resulting plasma from the final DTC wash was circulated throughvortexer 72 and centrifuge 81 for about 6 sequential washes. Vortexer 72had a capacity of 500 mL, and centrifuge 81 had a capacity of 80 mL.Further, centrifuge 81 had a relative centrifugal force (RCF) of 560times gravity (506×g).

The second mixture was then introduced into a final phase subsystem 218as shown in FIG. 10. The second mixture was circulated through HFCs 160and 162 at a flow rate of about 750 mL/min, wherein each HFC had aholdup volume of about 50 mL and an area of about 4200 cm². Air wascirculated through the shell side of hollow fibers 164 and 166 of HFCs160 and 162 to extract the residual first and second extraction solventsfrom the fluid. Carbon bed 180 was used to remove solvent vapors in therecirculating gas stream. This process was continued until the solventvapor detector 176 indicated that solvent levels were below a particularthreshold, such as below 10 ppm or below about 50 milligrams of solventper 3.5 liters of fluid, enabling the remaining solvent to be removedwith a final pass through the carbon bed 180. Upon indication thatsufficient levels of solvent were removed, the fluid was then tested todetermine the effectiveness of the apparatus.

The process resulted in a reduction of cholesterol of about 90 percent,which was measured by standard lipid profile enzymatic assays that areknown in the art. For a volume of approximately 300 mL of plasma andusing discontinuous subsystems emulating the system described above, thedelipidation process described above takes approximately 20 minutes,thereby achieving a delipidation throughput of about 15 mL/min.

B. Second Embodiment

1. Initial Phase Subsystem

FIG. 11 depicts an initial phase subsystem 12 composed of a DTC 220 forcontacting a first extraction solvent with a fluid containing lipids orlipid-containing organisms, or both, and for removing at least a portionof the total concentration of lipids from the fluid. While FIG. 11 showsa single DTC, initial phase subsystem 12 may be composed of one or moreDTCs coupled in series or parallel or any combination thereof. DTC 220may be configured as shown in FIG. 5.

DTC 220 is in fluid communication with a fluid source 222 for receivinga fluid. Fluid source 222 may be positioned to feed the fluid to DTC 220using gravity flow, a vacuum, a pump 224, which may be a peristalticpump or other pump not having vanes that contact the fluid being pumped,or other means. DTC 220 contains a first extraction solvent supplied byfirst extraction solvent source 226 via gravity, a vacuum, pump 228,which may be a peristaltic pump, centrifugal pump or other suitablepump, or other suitable means. First extraction solvent source 226includes a vent 227 for safe operation. As described above, DTC 220contains a dispersion device, which is typically a small gauge needlefor inserting the fluid into DTC 220 as a fine dispersion. At least aportion of the lipids contained within the fluids separate and dissolvein the first extraction solvent. This mixture of solvent and dissolvedlipids in DTC 220 are transferred through valve-230 to waste receptacle232, which includes a vent 234 for safe operation. The fluid that isplaced into DTC 220 falls through the first extraction solvent and comesto rest in the bottom portion of DTC 220. The fluid is then taken fromDTC 220 and sent to intermediate phase subsystem 14 as a first mixtureof fluid and first extraction solvent.

2. Intermediate Phase Subsystem

Intermediate phase subsystem 14 shown in FIG. 11 includes eight DTCs236-250 for removing at least a portion of the lipids contained withinthe fluid that were not removed within initial phase subsystem 12. WhileFIG. 11 shows eight DTCs, intermediate phase subsystem 14 may becomposed on any number of appropriately sized DTCs, such as one or more.Further, the DTCs may be configured in series, as shown in FIG. 1, or inparallel, or in any combination thereof DTC 236 receives a first mixtureof the fluid and the first extraction solvent from DTC 220 of initialphase subsystem 12. Each DTC 236-250 is filled with a second extractionsolvent received from second extraction solvent source 252. Secondextraction solvent source 252 also includes a vent 254 for safeoperation.

The first mixture of fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms, or both, and first extraction solvent is sent through each ofDTCs 236-250. During operation of intermediate phase subsystem 14, atleast a portion of the first extraction solvent that mixed with thefluid in initial phase subsystem 12. Further, the second extractionsolvent may remove a portion of the lipids that may not have beenseparated from the fluid by initial phase subsystem 12. Also, a portionof the second extraction solvent may mix with the mixture of fluid andfirst extraction solvent to form a second mixture. This second mixtureof fluid and first and second extraction solvents is then sent to finalsubsystem 16 through valve 256. The waste second extraction solvent mayinclude lipids and first extraction solvent removed from the fluid. Thewaste extraction solvent is removed from DTCs 236-250 using gravity, avacuum, pump 262, or other means and may either be sent throughcondenser 258 or to waste receptacle 232 using valve 260. Pump 262 maybe either a peristaltic pump or other type pump.

3. Final Phase Subsystem

The embodiment of the delipidation system 10 shown in FIG. 11 may beused with either the once-through subsystem 99 shown in FIG. 9 or therecirculating subsystem 218 shown in FIG. 10. However, this embodimentof delipidation system 10 is not limited to being used with theseembodiments of final phase subsystem 16. Rather, this embodiment ofdelipidation system 10 shown in FIG. 11 may be used with any systemcapable of reducing the concentrations of first and second extractionsolvents in the fluid to a level beneath a particular threshold enablingthe fluid to be administered to a patient without undesirableconsequences. The threshold may be, but is not limited to, about 10 ppmor below about 50 milligrams of solvent per 3.5 liters of fluid.

4. Example of Use

As described above, the delipidation device depicted schematically inFIG. 11 is capable of removing at least a portion of a totalconcentration of lipids from a fluid or from lipid-containing organisms,or both. In this particular example, the fluid used was bovine plasma.The bovine plasma was sent to DTC 220 at a flow rate of 15 mL/min whereit contacted a first extraction solvent, which was composed of about 60percent DiPE and about 40 percent n-butanol. The first extractionsolvent was added to DTC 220 before the introduction of plasma at a flowrate of about 200 mL/min. Contacting the first extraction solvent withthe plasma caused lipids to separate from the plasma and to form a firstmixture of plasma and first extraction solvent. Similarly, lipids inlipid-containing organisms may be removed by the first extractionsolvent.

The first mixture was then washed with a second extraction solvent,which was diethyl ether (DEE), in a series of DTCs 236-250, which wereabout 20 inches long and about 0.375 inches in diameter. The processcreated a second mixture composed of the plasma and first and secondextraction solvents. At least a portion of the lipids contained in theplasma was removed after passing the first mixture only one time throughthe DTCs forming intermediate phase subsystem 14, which was observed asthe initially turbid plasma becoming clearer with a single pass throughthe DTCs containing DEE. In addition, at least a portion of then-butanol was removed. The flow rate through the intermediate phasesubsystem 14 was approximately 15 mL/min.

The second mixture was then introduced into a final phase subsystem 218as shown in FIG. 10. The second mixture was circulated through BFCs 160and 162 at a flow rate of about 750 mL/min, wherein each HFC had aholdup volume of about 50 mL and an area of about 4200 cm². Air wascirculated through the shells of HFCs 160 and 162 to extract theresidual first extraction solvent from the fluid. This process wascontinued until the solvent vapor detector 176 indicated that solventlevels were below a particular threshold enabling the remaining solventto be removed with a final pass through the carbon bed 180. Uponindication that sufficient levels of solvent were removed enabling thefluid to be returned to a patient without undesirable effects, the fluidwas then tested to determine the effectiveness of this embodiment.

The process resulted in a reduction of cholesterol of about 90 percent,which was measured by standard lipid profile enzymatic assays that areknown in the art. For a volume of approximately 300 mL of plasma andusing discontinuous subsystems emulating the system described above, thedelipidation process takes approximately 20 minutes, thereby achieving adelipidation throughput of about 15 mL/min.

C. Third Embodiment

1. General Description

FIG. 12 depicts a portion of another embodiment of delipidation system10 which includes initial phase subsystem and intermediate phasesubsystem. This embodiment may be used together with the final phasesubsystems shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 as described in 10 more detail below.Unlike the previous systems described above, this embodiment does notuse different apparatuses to complete the initial and intermediatephases of the delipidation process. Rather, this embodiment uses asingle apparatus for completing the initial and intermediate phases ofthe delipidation process.

Specifically, FIG. 12 depicts in-line static mixers 270 and 272 coupledto both inlet 15 and outlet sides of a vortexer 274. In-line staticmixers 270 and 272 may be formed from many designs, but typicallyinclude single or multiple tubes containing one or more flow vanes alongtheir length. Further, this embodiment is not limited to two in-linestatic mixers, but may comprise any number of in-line mixers coupled inseries or parallel configuration, or any combination of theseconfigurations. The vanes cause mixing and shearing of the fluids 20passed through the mixers. The amount of mixing and shearing can beregulated by changing the flow rates of the fluid through mixers 270 and272. An example of in-line static mixers 270 and 272 are available fromCole-Parmer Instrument Company, Vernon Hills, Ill. as Catalog PartNumber U-04668-14.

Vortexer 274 may be a continuous vortexer, as shown in FIG. 6, or abatch vortexer, as shown in FIG. 7. Furthermore, the configuration ofthis embodiment is not limited to the design shown in FIG. 12. Forinstance, vortexer 274 may be positioned before in-line static mixer 270or after in-line static mixer 272. As previously described, thesevortexers operate upon receiving external vibration that causes vorticesto form in each tube. The non-rotating vortexer 274 is advantageousbecause of its simplistic design that is less expensive than morecomplicated designs. Thus, it may be used more efficiently than otherdevices in a disposable system. Further, vortexer 274 does not containany bushings, bearings or moving parts that are subject to failure.

In-line static mixer 270 receives a fluid from a fluid source 276through valve 278 via gravity, a vacuum, a pump 280, or other means.Prior to the fluid entering in-line static mixer 270, the fluid mixeswith a first extraction solvent at T-connection 282. The firstextraction solvent is supplied from a first extraction solvent source284 through valves 286 and 288 via gravity, pump 290, which may be aperistaltic pump, centrifugal pump, or other type pump, or other means.First extraction solvent source 284 includes vent 292 for safeoperation.

A centrifuge 294 may be positioned in-line down stream of in-line staticmixers 270 and 272 and vortexer 274. Centrifuge 294, as shown in FIG. 8,is configured as a discontinuous flow-through channel in the shape of aring that is spun about its axis. However, centrifuge 294 is not limitedto this configuration. Rather, centrifuge 294 may be any centrifuge.Centrifuge 294 separates the fluid from the first and second extractionsolvents.

During operation, a fluid is sent from fluid source 276 to in-linestatic mixer 270. A first extraction solvent mixes with the fluid atT-connection 282 prior to the fluid entering in-line static mixer 276.The fluid and first extraction solvent pass through in-line staticmixers 270 and 272 and vortexer 274 where at least a portion of thelipids contained within the fluid or in lipid-containing organisms areseparated and dissolve into the first extraction solvent. The firstmixture of first extraction solvent and fluid passes through centrifuge294 where the first extraction solvent is separated from the fluid. Thefluid is sent back to valve 278, and the first extraction solventseparated from the fluid is deposited in waste receptacle 296, which mayinclude vent 298, or circulated through condenser 300 to valve 288 to bemixed with a fluid. The fluid may be sent through in-line static mixers270 and 272 one or more times during the initial phase.

The intermediate phase of the delipidation system 10 is conducted usingin-line static mixers 270 and 272 and vortexer 274. Specifically, thefirst mixture composed of the fluid and residual first extractionsolvent not completely removed by centrifuge 294 is sent throughT-connection 282 and mixes with a second extraction solvent to form asecond mixture. The second mixture solvent is contained in a secondextraction solvent source 302, which may include a vent 304 for safeoperation. The second mixture of and first and second extractionsolvents is sent through in-line static mixers 270 and 272 and vortexer274 where a portion of the first extraction solvent may be removed. Forexample, in one embodiment in which the first extraction solvent is amixture of DiPE and n-butanol, the second extraction solvent separatesat least a portion of the n-butanol from the mixture of first extractionsolvent and the fluid. The second extraction solvent may also separate aportion of the lipids from the fluid not removed while using the firstextraction solvent. The separated lipids may dissolve in the first orsecond extraction solvents, or both. The second mixture is sent throughcentrifuge 294 where the fluid and the first and second extractionsolvents are separated. After passing through centrifuge 294, the fluidcontains small amounts of first and second extraction solvents and issent to final phase subsystem 16 for removal of these remaining amountsof the first and second extraction solvents. The first and secondextraction solvents are then sent to waste receptacle 296.

This embodiment may be used in cooperation with a subsystem capable ofremoving at least a portion of the first and second extraction solventsfrom the fluid after it has passed through initial and intermediatephase subsystems. For example, this embodiment may be combined with theonce-through subsystem 99 shown in FIG. 9 or the recirculating subsystem218 shown in FIG. 10. Each of these subsystems is explained in moredetail in Sections III.A.3(a) and (b) above.

2. Example of Use

As described above, the delipidation device depicted schematically inFIG. 12 is capable of removing at least a portion of a totalconcentration of lipids from a fluid containing lipids or fromlipid-containing organisms, or both. In this particular example, bovineplasma was used as the fluid. The bovine plasma was introduced toin-line static mixer 270, as shown for instance in FIG. 12, at a flowrate of about 50 mL/min where it contacted a first extraction solvent,which was composed of about 60 percent DiPE and about 40 percentn-butanol. The first extraction solvent was added to in-line staticmixer 270 at a flow rate of about 50 mL/min. Contacting the firstextraction solvent with the plasma caused lipids to separate from thefluid and form a first mixture of plasma and first extraction solvent.The first mixture was then circulated through vortexer 274. The vortexer274 had a capacity of 500 mL, and the centrifuge 294 had a capacity of80 mL. The first mixture was then sent through in-line static mixer 272.The first mixture then circulated through centrifuge 294, which had arelative centrifugal force (RCF) equal to about 560 times gravity(560×g). Multiple passes through the circulation loop may be required toachieve the desired delipidation result. Further, a second extractionsolvent may also be used, preferably a diethyl ether (DEE) solvent, toachieve the desired amount of removal of a first extraction solvent.Adding a second extraction solvent to the first mixture forms a secondmixture composed of the plasma and the first and second extractionsolvents.

The second mixture was then introduced into a final phase subsystem asshown in FIG. 10. The second mixture was circulated through HFCs 160 and162 at a flow rate of about 750 mL/min, wherein each HFC had a holdupvolume of about 50 mL and an area of about 4200 cm². Air was circulatedthrough the shells 172 and 174 of HFCs 160 and 162 to extract theresidual first extraction solvent from the fluid. This process wascontinued until the solvent vapor detector 176 indicated that solventlevels were below a particular threshold enabling the remaining solventto be removed with a final pass through the carbon bed 180. Uponindication that sufficient levels of solvent were removed, the fluid wasthen tested to determine the effectiveness of the apparatus.

The total percentage of lipid extracted as measured by reduction oftotal cholesterol was about 80 percent, as measured by standard lipidprofile enzymatic assays that are known in the art. This method canproduce fluid having a reduced concentration of lipids orlipid-containing organisms at a rate of about 50 mL/min. This apparatussuccessfully removed about 85 percent of the total concentration ofcholesterol, about 64 percent of triglycerides, about 64 percentphospholipids and about 96 percent high density lipoproteins (HDL) usingdiscontinuous subsystems emulating the system described above.

D. Fourth Embodiment

1. General Description

FIG. 13 depicts a delipidation system 10 that is similar to theembodiment shown in FIG. 12. However, in-line static mixers 270 and 272and vortexer 274 have been replaced with HFC 310. While FIG. 13 shows asingle HFC, the embodiment may include one or more HFCs configured inparallel or in series, or in any combination thereof. BC 310 may beconstructed as described above, including hollow fibers 312 and achamber 314, that is also referred to as the shell side of hollow fibers312. As in the embodiment shown in FIG. 12, one apparatus is capable ofperforming the initial and intermediate phases of delipidation.

HFC 310 receives a fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms, or both, from a fluid source 316, which may be a container,patient or other fluid source, through valve 318 via gravity, pump 320,or other means. Pump 320 may be a peristaltic pump or other pump nothaving vanes that contact the fluid being pumped. The fluid is sentthrough the lumens of hollow fibers 312 of HFC 310 to contact the fluidwith a first extraction solvent. The first extraction solvent iscontained within a first extraction solvent source 322 which may havevent 324 for safe operation. The first extraction solvent is sent fromfirst extraction solvent source 322 through valves 326 and 328 viagravity, pump 330, which may be a peristaltic pump, centrifugal pump orother type pump, or other means.

The first extraction solvent crosses the pores of HFC 310 and causes atleast a portion of the lipids contained within the fluid to separate. Atleast a portion of the separated lipids diffuse through the pores ofhollow fibers 312 and return to chamber 314. However, some of the firstextraction solvent that diffused the pores into the lumens of hollowfibers 312 will remain in the fluid to form a first mixture composed ofthe first extraction solvent and the fluid. Further, a portion of thelipids that separate from the fluid may attach to the inside surface ofthe lumens of hollow fibers 312. The first extraction solvent located inchamber 314 flows through HFC 310 and valve 332 and into wastereceptacle 334, which may have a vent 336 for safe operation, or throughcondenser 342 to be used in HFC 310 once again. The first mixture offluid and first extraction fluid flows from the lumens into hollowfibers 312 through valve 338 and is returned to the upstream side of HFC310.

The intermediate phase of the delipidation process may be conducted bysending the mixture of fluid and the first extraction solvent throughthe lumens of hollow fibers 312 of HFC 310 to contact a secondextraction solvent located in chamber 314. In one embodiment, HFC 310 isthe same HFC used in the initial phase. In an alternative embodiment,HFC 310 may be replaced or reoriented so that the flow through thelumens of hollow fibers 312 or chamber 314, or both, is reversed. Thesecond extraction solvent is sent from a second extraction solventsource 340 to chamber 314 of HFC 310 through valves 326 and 328 viagravity, a vacuum, pump 330, or other means. At least a portion of thesecond extraction solvent crosses the pores of hollow fibers 312 andmixes with the mixture of fluid and first extraction solvent removing atleast a portion of a first extraction solvent. For example, in oneembodiment in which a first extraction solvent is a mixture of n-butanoland DiPE, a second extraction solvent removes at least a portion of then-butanol from the mixture. The second extraction solvent may also causelipids to separate from the fluid. A portion of the separated lipids mayattach to the inside surface of hollow fibers 312 and a portion of theseparated lipids may dissolve in the second extraction solvent and crossthe pores of hollow fibers 312 into chamber 314.

At the conclusion of the intermediate phase of the delipidation process,the fluid contains a small amount of first and second extractionsolvents and is referred to as a second mixture. This mixture is sentthrough valve 338 to a system capable of extracting at least a portionof the second extraction solvent from the fluid to reduce theconcentration of this solvent to a level enabling the fluid to beadministered to a patient without potentially adverse consequences.Examples of systems capable of removing the second extraction solventsare the once-through subsystem 99, shown in FIG. 9, and therecirculating subsystem 218, shown in FIG. 10, as fully described above.However, this invention is not limited to these embodiments.

This embodiment described above may be assembled in a module thatresembles module 306 depicted in FIGS. 18 and 19. The module containsthe components of delipidation system 10 through which the fluid flows.In one embodiment, the module is disposable, which enables the system tobe set up quickly after having been used. The device is prepared for usewith another patient's fluid by simply removing the module and replacingit with an unused sterile module or a module that is sterilizedfollowing a prior use.

2. Method of Operation

This embodiment combines a fluid, which preferably is plasma, and atleast one first extraction solvent. In this example, the firstextraction solvent may be composed of about 40 percent n-butanol andabout 60 percent di-isopropyl ether (DiPE). The fluid is mixed, agitatedor otherwise contacted with the first extraction solvent to remove aportion of the lipids or lipid-containing organisms from the fluid. Asmall batch of the plasma, which is typically about 250 milliliters, ispassed through the lumens of hollow fibers 312 of HFC 310 at a flow rateof about 20 mL/min. HFC 310 provides a method of contacting the plasmawith the first extraction solvent while essentially keeping the twomixtures separated. However, a portion of the first extraction solventcrosses the pores of HFC 310 and does not return to the shell side ofhollow fibers 312 and thus forms a first mixture. The first mixture isrecirculated through HFC 310 at the same flow rate, which is usuallyabout 20 mL/min.

The first extraction solvent is then substantially removed from theplasma before being administered to a patient. First, the flow of plasmais stopped, and the first extraction solvent is removed from the shellside of the HFC. A second extraction solvent is then sent through theshell side of the hollow fibers of the HFC. The second extractionsolvent may be composed of about 100 percent isopropyl ether, about 100percent ethyl ether, or any other ether or concentration of theseethers. Desirable properties of the ethers include, but are not limitedto, reduced toxicity, higher vapor pressure, and a partition coefficientthat is favorable with n-butanol. The second extraction solvent does notrecirculate as does the first extraction solvent. Instead, the secondextraction solvent flows through HFC 310 only one time at a rate ofabout 40 mL/min. The first mixture is sent through HFC 310 multipletimes at a rate of about 20 mL/min for about 90 minutes. The secondextraction solvent crosses the membrane of the hollow fibers of the HFCand mixes with the first mixture of plasma and first extraction solventto form a second mixture. In one embodiment in which the firstextraction solvent is a mixture of n-butanol and DiPE, the secondextraction solvent removes at least a portion of the n-butanol from thefirst mixture. In addition, the second extraction solvent may remove aportion of the remaining lipids from the fluid. The second extractionsolvent is then removed by, for instance evaporating the second washsolvent from the plasma using a pervaporation system, such as thesubsystems shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.

E. Fifth Embodiment

FIG. 20 depicts another embodiment of delipidation system 10 thatincludes initial, intermediate and final phase subsystems. Initial phasesubsystem 12 includes at least one vortexer 350 for mixing a fluidcontaining lipids or lipid-containing organisms with a first extractionsolvent. Vortexer 350 may be a continuous vortexer as shown in FIG. 6 ora batch vortexer as shown in FIG. 7. These vortexers operate uponreceiving external vibration that causes vortices to form in each tube.The non-rotating vortexer 350 is advantageous because of its simplisticdesign that is less expensive than more complicated designs. Thus, itmay be used more efficiently than other devices in a disposable system.Further, vortexer 350 does not contain any bushings, bearings or movingparts that are subject to failure. However, vortexer 350 may be formedfrom an alternative design. Initial phase subsystem 12 may also includecentrifuge 356, which may be configured as shown in 8 or may beconfigured in another manner.

Vortexer 350 receives a fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms from a fluid supply source 352 and mixes the fluid with afirst extraction solvent received from a first extraction solvent source354. Vortexer 350 forms a first mixture of first extraction solvent andfluid. Vortexer 350 also causes lipids to separate from the fluid orlipid-containing organisms. The lipids are removed and discarded, andthe first mixture is sent to intermediate phase subsystem 14.

Intermediate phase subsystem 14 is composed of at least one HFC forcontacting the first mixture with a second extraction solvent to removeat least a portion of the first extraction solvent from the firstmixture. FIG. 20 shows three HFCs 358, 360, and 362, which may beconfigured as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and described in detail above. Thefirst mixture may be sent through lumens of HFCs 358, 360, and 362, anda second extraction solvent, supplied from second extraction solventsource 355, may be sent through HFCs 358, 360, and 362 on the shell sideof the lumens, or vice versa. HFCs 358, 360, and 362 removes at least aportion of the first extraction solvent from the first mixture and formsa second mixture of the fluid containing lipids or lipid-containingorganisms and the first and second extraction solvents. The amount ofsurface area of hollow fibers required and the amount of residence timerequired for the fluid to reside in HFCs 358, 360, and 362 is calculatedas set forth above. In embodiments having two or more HFCs 354, HFCs maybe configures in parallel, series, any combination thereof, or any otherconfiguration.

Intermediate phase subsystem 14 passes a second mixture of fluid andfirst and second extraction solvent to final phase subsystem 16. Finalphase subsystem 16 removes substantially all of the second extractionsolvent and any remaining first extraction solvent not removed inintermediate phase subsystem 14. Final phase subsystem 16 may becomposed of any system capable of removing extraction solvents from afluid containing lipids or lipid-containing organisms. Exemplary systemsare shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 and described in III.A.3(a) and (b),respectively and labeled as final phase subsystem 16 in FIG. 20. Theembodiment shown in FIG. 20 includes two HFCs 364 and 366 for removingat least a portion of the first and second extraction solvents from thesecond mixture. A material such as, but not limited to, air, an inertgas, nitrogen and the like, or mineral oil may be circulated throughHFCs 364 and 366 on the shell side of the lumens and through solventremoval subsystem 368. Solvent removal subsystem may include a firststerile filter 370, a vacuum pump 372, a second sterile filter 374, andone or more carbon beds 376.

F. Exemplary Embodiments

The embodiments described above may be manufactured so that allcomponents that come in contact with a fluid containing lipids orlipid-containing organisms, or both, during operation are containedwithin a single module that may be disposable. The first embodimentdescribed above may be assembled in a module 98, as depicted in FIGS. 14and 15. The second embodiment described above may be assembled in amodule 264, as depicted in FIGS. 16 and 17. The third embodimentdescribed above may be assembled in a module 306, as depicted in FIGS.18 and 19. Modules 98, 264 and 306 contain components of delipidationsystem 10 through which the fluid flows. To prevent the spread ofdiseases and for other health reasons, the delipidation system 10 shouldbe cleaned after each use before being used with a fluid from adifferent source. In one embodiment, modules 98, 264 and 306 aredisposable, which enables the system to be set up quickly after havingbeen used. Delipidation device 10 may be prepared for use with anotherpatient's fluid by simply removing a module and replacing it with asterile module that may have never been used or may have been sterilizedsince a prior use.

G. Experimental Results

A system having an initial, intermediate, and final phase subsystems wasemployed. The initial phase subsystem was composed of three HFCsmanufactured by Celguard. The intermediate phase subsystems was composedof three HFCs manufactured by Spectrum, and the final phase subsystemwas composed of two HFCs manufactured by Celguard. All HFCs wereoriented in series. Plasma was applied to the lumens of the HFCs. In theinitial phase subsystem, the shell side of the HFCs contained a mixtureof 40% butanol and 60% DIPE flowing in the same direction as the plasmaflowing through the lumens of the HFCs at a rate of about 20 ml/min.

In the intermediate phase subsystem, 100 percent DiPE flowed through theHFCs on the shell side of the lumens at a rate of 40 ml per minute in acountercurrent direction to the direction of flow of the plasma throughthe lumens of the HFCs. In the final phase subsystem, air flowed throughthe three HFCs on the shell side of the lumens. Clinical chemistry datacharacterizing the parameters in the effluent delipidated plasma wereobtained using a Hitachi 911. Results indicated dramatic reductions incholesterol, triglycerides and HDL. Very little change or no change wasobserved in electrolytes (Na, Cl, and K), calcium, phosphorous, protein,albumin, globulin, phospholipids, creatinine, BUN, glucose, and alkalinephosphatase.

While various embodiments of this invention have been set forth above,these descriptions of the preferred embodiment are given for purposes ofillustration and explanation. Variations, changes, modifications, anddepartures from the systems and methods disclosed above may be adoptedwithout departure from the spirit and scope of this invention.

1-70. (canceled)
 71. A method for removing lipids from a fluidcontaining lipids or from lipid-containing organisms, the methodcomprising: supplying a first extraction solvent from a first extractionsolvent source; contacting the fluid and the first extraction solventusing at least one in-line static mixer to form a first mixture; passingat least a portion of the first mixture to a first solvent removaldevice comprising a vortexer; supplying a second extraction solvent froma second extraction solvent source; contacting the portion of the firstmixture and a second extraction solvent using the vortexer to form asecond mixture; and passing at least a portion of the second mixture toa second solvent removal device.
 72. The method of claim 71, whereinpassing at least a portion of the second mixture to a second solventremoval device comprises contacting the second mixture with a gas ormineral oil using at least one hollow fiber contactor to remove anyremaining solvents.
 73. The method of claim 71, wherein contacting thefluid and the first extraction solvent in the at least one in-linestatic mixer to form a first mixture further comprises dissolving atleast a portion of the lipids.
 74. The method of claim 71, whereincontacting the portion of the first mixture and a second extractionsolvent to form a second mixture further comprises dissolving at least aportion of the first extraction solvent and additional lipids.
 75. Themethod of claim 71, further comprising passing the first mixture to acentrifuge and spinning the first mixture prior to passing at least aportion of the first mixture to the first solvent removal device.
 76. Amethod for removing lipids from a fluid containing lipids or fromlipid-containing organisms, the method comprising: supplying a firstextraction solvent from a first extraction solvent source; contactingthe fluid and the first extraction solvent using at least one dripthrough column to form a first mixture; passing at least a portion ofthe first mixture to a first solvent removal device; supplying a secondextraction solvent from a second extraction solvent source; contactingthe portion of the first mixture and a second extraction solvent to forma second mixture; and passing at least a portion of the second mixtureto a second solvent removal device.
 77. The method of claim 76, whereinpassing at least a portion of the second mixture to a second solventremoval device comprises contacting the second mixture with a gas ormineral oil using at least one hollow fiber contactor to remove anyremaining solvents.
 78. The method of claim 76, wherein contacting thefluid and the first extraction solvent in the at least one drip throughcolumn to form a first mixture further comprises dissolving at least aportion of the lipids.
 79. The method of claim 76, wherein contactingthe portion of the first mixture and a second extraction solvent to forma second mixture further comprises dissolving at least a portion of thefirst extraction solvent and additional lipids.
 80. A method forremoving lipids from a fluid containing lipids or from lipid-containingorganisms, the method comprising: supplying a first extraction solventfrom a first extraction solvent source; contacting the fluid and thefirst extraction solvent to form a first mixture; passing at least aportion of the first mixture to at least one drip through column;supplying a second extraction solvent from a second extraction solventsource; contacting the portion of the first mixture and a secondextraction solvent using the at least one drip through column to form asecond mixture; and passing at least a portion of the second mixture toa second solvent removal device.
 81. The method of claim 80, whereinpassing at least a portion of the second mixture to a second solventremoval device comprises contacting the second mixture with a gas ormineral oil using at least one hollow fiber contactor to remove anyremaining solvents.
 82. The method of claim 80, wherein contacting thefluid and the first extraction solvent to form a first mixture furthercomprises dissolving at least a portion of the lipids.
 83. The method ofclaim 80, wherein contacting the portion of the first mixture and asecond extraction solvent using the at least one drip through column toform a second mixture further comprises dissolving at least a portion ofthe first extraction solvent and additional lipids.